Shs10b was requested on presidential directive – Kamya

By Francis Lubega

25^th May 2022

The Inspector General of Government -IGG Betty Kamya has denied responsibility of requesting for Shs10.6bn supplementary budget while still the Land Minister.

Appearing before the parliamentary Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises -COSASE on Wednesday chaired by the Nakawa West Member of Parliament Joel Ssenyonyi, Kamya said that she acted upon the presidential directive and her only initiation was to write to the ministry of finance requesting to release the money to Uganda Lands Commission -ULC as per the directive.

By then, according to the Auditor General’s report of 2020/2021, Kamya is accused of fouling the law by requesting for supplementary funds without the ULC acknowledgement or request.

Furthermore, the report also implicated Kamya for having based on ghost land beneficiaries to claim the supplementary.

Kamya, however defended herself by saying that she cooperated with one Barbara who by then was the UCL Secretary to submit the list of the beneficiaries and even guided on who to pay.

The money in question was used to compensate Lusanja Land, the demolished Ndeeba church and also other four claimants who had sued the ULC and court orders were issued to pay.

Meanwhile, on the issue of the ongoing investigations on the former ULC chairperson Beatrice Byenkya about the complaints of mismanaging the commission, Betty said that she assigned her deputy IGG to handle the file and once concluded, a report will be released and given to parliament.

She said that the interdiction of Byenkya was as a result of a petition from her current minister Judith Nabakooba and all the members of the commission.