Youth power ignore IGG reply insist on Bagyenda case

By Maria Nassiwa
Kampala: A section of youth have ignored a lengthy explanation from the government Ombudsman and insisted she investigates with intention of making public wealth details of embattled Bank of Uganda director, Justine Bagyenda.

Under their umbrella association, Youth Power Research Uganda, the youth penned a response to the IGG terming her stance in the letter as “a sign of incompetence and pride and failure to know that you are accountable to the public as per the law.”

“You seem to use the Leadership Code Act section 4C to hide and exonerate your former schoolmate and church mate and that you will only give the report to Parliament and therefore conclude by saying you cannot respond to our requests!” the youth said in a a press release to the media by their team leader, Ben Ssebuguzi.

Sometime last month, the youth wrote a letter to the IGG asking her to make public her findings from the investigations of the suspected wealth owned by Ms Bagyenda.

However, in her response, the IGG attempted to take the youth to school, dedicated a page of her three page response to educating them about the role of the office of the Inspectorate of Government.

In her response, Ms Mulyagonja advised the youth that the matter of their interest is already before the commercial court and Parliament, and that it would be in their interest to keep their ears on the ground for when the two institutions will be ready with their reports.

She also seemed to suggest that the youth are being used by Ms Bagyenda’s enemies.

“Without prejudice to the foregoing, I have noted that your demand for the alleged report in this matter does not appear to be your own free will as members of an organization rather it seems to be a result of the untiring efforts by other persons that have vested interests in the conflict between Ms Bagyenda and Crane Bank colluding with you to demand for a report.

“Your request also seems to be tainted with bad faith due to the unfounded reports that have been published before that the IGG and her staff are biased in favor of Ms Bagyenda,” the IGG’s letter reads in part.

The youth, however, asked the IGG to focus on her work methods, administration style toward the Bagyenda and Crane Bank issue as it could have cost many young people jobs.

“We know your jurisdiction as per the law and therefore we are not telling you to meddle in civil suit HCCS 493 of 2017, but all we want is the investigation report of those people that we suspect that were behind the dissolution of our banks,” the youth said.