KAMPALA: Junior workers at the Office of the Inspectorate of Government have written to the State House Anti-Corruption Unit to investigate corruption, impunity and maladministration in that the office, arguing that the institution requires a new leadership at the helm, urging President Yoweri Museveni to sack IGG Justice Irene Mulyagonja and other top managers.
The petitioners on March 3, 2019 via their letter to the Head of the Anti-Corruption Unit Lt Col. Edith Nakalema, calling urging her to intervene and restore order at the Office of the Inspectorate of Government. “We write in good faith, and pray that your good office shall take action on that matter,” the letter reads in part.
They accuse the Secretary to the Inspectorate Rose N. Nakafeero together with members of the board and the management team for handpicking and interviewing people and that are yet to issue new appointments to new inspectorate officers without following the normal recruitment procedure set by the Internal Human Resource Policy of 2017 or the Public Service Standing Orders 2010.
They claim some officials at the IGG’s office are receiving bribery of Shs350 million for people whose cases are not registered with the inspectorate. They want President Museveni to disband the management team lead by Mariam F. Wangadya.
The junior staff accuse top managers at the Inspectorate for taking long to confirm their colleagues who were posted to upcountry as Regional Inspectorate Officers or Principal Inspectorate Officers in various regional offices such as Fort Portal, Gulu, Lira, Arua, Moyo, Tororo and Hoima. The officers, according to the petitioners were posted about three years ago on the promise that they would be confirmed in six months but this has not happened.
“After one year of serving in this positions, the officers requested to be confirmed, however, they were told that the institution had maxed out the wage bill, so confirmations could not be made,” the petitioners say in their letter, adding that bosses at the IGG office have further angered their colleagues by insisting that since they were mere “caretakers” they cannot be confirmed in those positions. The petitioners argue that the answer is not convincing since the officers are being paid Acting allowances and have stayed in those positions for more than 12 months.
They say the Public Service Standing Orders 2010 (A-c) part 9 has been abused: “An appointment on acting basis is expected to last not more than six months, and is subject to direction by the Appointing Authority. Any period of acting appointment beyond six months will be null and void and the officer holding such an appointment shall automatically revert to his or her substantive post, unless the Appointing Authority extends the appointment of another period of six months, but shall not exceed 12 months in total. This arrangement will only apply when a statutory office is temporarily vacated.”
The petitioners say their colleagues, some of whom are acting as Deputy Regional Inspectorate Officers. “What the officers really want is either to be confirmed in those positions immediately or reverted to their old substantive positions,” the letter reads.
They claim bribery cases have made the office of the IGG not to perform as expected.
