The Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has raised serious concerns over the Ministry of East African Community Affairs’ spending on fuel and vehicle maintenance, which amounted to a staggering 1.3 billion shillings in the 2023/2024 financial year.
The revelation was made during a committee session chaired by Deputy Chairperson Hon. Gorreth Namuga, as PAC members met with ministry officials led by Permanent Secretary Edith Mwanje.
The figures, flagged in the latest Auditor General’s report, highlighted unusually high monthly expenditures by the ministry.
According to the report, the ministry spends approximately 115 million shillings each month about 3.8 million shillings per day on fuel alone for its fleet of 28 vehicles.
An additional 40 million shillings is used monthly for vehicle maintenance.
These figures left members of the committee visibly stunned, with several questioning the sustainability and accountability of such spending within a single ministry.
In her defense, PS Mwanje attributed the high costs to an aging fleet of government vehicles.
She further explained that efforts to replace the fleet have been hindered by a Ministry of Finance directive, which imposed a ban on the procurement of new government vehicles.
By Francis Lubega
26th June 2025
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