The Inspector General of Government (IGG) Beti Kamya Turwomwe has announced the 2023 roadmap for the next declaration of income, assets, and liabilities of Leaders.
The IGG made the revelation during a press conference at Uganda Media Centre on February 21, 2023.
She said that this year’s declaration exercise will be launched on Wednesday March 1, 2023 in Lira City and will be presided over by the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Rt. Hon. Thomas Tayebwa, who will in effect be the first declarant this declaration year.
The exercise will run from 1st March 2023 and will close on 31st March, 2023 at midnight.
“Please take serious note that there is no provision in the law to extend this period. Therefore any leader who will not have declared by 31st March 2023 will be in violation of the law,” the IGG warned.
The IGG noted that Articles 223 (2) and 234 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda and section 4 of the Leadership Code Act require political leaders and appointed leaders specified under the Second Schedule Part A and the Third Schedule Part A and Part B of the Leadership Code Act, 2002, amended in 2021 to declare to the Inspectorate of Government (IG) their income, assets and liabilities every two years in the month of March.
The previous declaration was done in March 2021.
However, this year’s declaration is only meant for Leaders and not for Public Officers.
The category of Leaders include elected political leaders from LC3 upwards to the President, people appointed by the President for instance, Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Public Institutions, Board Members of Public Institutions and Executive Leaders of registered political parties among others.
Public Officers are also supposed to declare but under a different legal provision. Public Officers are all those people, other than Leaders whose salaries are paid from the Consolidated Fund.
“For this category, the law requires that they declare their income, assets and liabilities within 3 months after being appointed to a government job and thereafter every five years in the month of April. So the next declaration for Public Officers will be in April 2026. But for clarity, only those Leaders specified under the schedule are required to declare starting from 1st to 31st March 2023,” the IGG said.
The IGG said that declarations will be submitted digitally using the IG-Online Declaration System (IG-ODS) which will be opened on 1st March 2023 and closed on 31st March 2023 at midnight.
“In case a declarant needs help, they should seek the support of the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer or Inspectorate of Government Regional Office or selected people in all Government Institutions called Focal Persons who have been trained to use the IG-ODS,” she said.
She also emphasised the fact that there are serious sanctions under the law for non-declaration, over declaration, falsification of facts and anticipatory declaration of income, assets and liabilities.
The sanctions for breach of the Code include fines, warning, caution, demotion, and dismissal from office, vacation of office, and confiscation and forfeiture of illicitly acquired assets, gifts or benefits to the Government.
