The Makerere University Students’ Guild will finally pass a shs210 million budget at the beginning of July, following the botched meeting on May 31st to pass the draft presented by the Guild finance minister, Michael Kijjambu.
Media reports last week indicated that members of the Council accused Kijjambu for prioritizing petty issues like airtime and carpets and vowed not to pass the budget unless such matters were struck out.
It is also alleged that the Guild Prime Minister had allocated his office shs24m while the Guild President’s office was allocated shs35m, a move the members opposed.
However, the Guild President David Bala, said they were not in position to pass the budget because the person in charge was not prepared.
“We are now ready and are just waiting for the next session which is in two weeks,” Bala said.
Just like any part of the university, the University Council gives the Guild a ceiling of shs210m to run their activities for a nine-month financial year.
But according to Bala, this money is not enough to facilitate all the ministries and Guild activities.
“We cannot entirely depend on the budget, we also contribute and outsource from civil society organizations, the university and other stakeholders,” he said.
The Guild information minister Davidson Ndyabahika, confirmed all the necessary preparations for the budget discussions and said they are now waiting for the Guild Speaker to schedule a session.
The Guild executive is comprised 27 people including the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Campus Affairs, Minister for National and Pan-African Affairs, Minister for Internal Affairs, Minister for Finance, Minister for Social Affairs, Minister for Information, Minister for Off-Campus Affairs and Minister for Health.
The others are Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Minister of Academic Affairs, Minister for Production, Minister for Culture and Mobilization, Minister for Women Affairs, Minister for Transport, Minister for Employment, Minister of Students’ with Disabilities, Minister for Security, Minister for Information and Computer Technology, Minister of Ethics and Integrity, Minister without Portfolio, Minister for Private Students Affair, Minister for Postgraduate and the Minister for Gender.
