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URA speaks out on top bosses resignation

By
Our Reporter
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URA CG Mr. John Musinguzi Rujoki

The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has said that three senior Commissioners resigned from the tax body after a Board of Directors meeting that made “recommendations concerning re-organisation of the management of URA.”

In a press statement,the URA Management said the Board of Directors met on 28th May 2020 to discuss re-organisation and management of the tax body.

Eagle Online last night exclusively reported details of turmoil at the tax-body that was largely triggered by the controversial appointment of Musinguzi Rujoki to replace Doris Akol as Commissioner General.

Mr Rujoki’s appointment was not well-received among senior staff at the tax-body as many doubt his leadership nous.

On 29th May 2020,four senior Commissioners;Mr Dickens Kateshumbwa,Mr Henry Saka,Mr Samuel Kahima and Mr Silaj Kanyesigye Baguma chose to resign.

In the statement,URA revealed that following the re-organisation,Mr Patrick Mukiibi would be transferred from the position of Commissioner Corporate Services to position of Commissioner Domestic Services.

Ms Patience Rubagumywa will remain Commissioner Legal Services and Board Affairs.

Mr Herbert Musoke will remain Commissioner Internal Audit and Compliance.

Herbert Kagumire will remain Acting Commissioner Customs.

Mr Mathew Mugabi has been appointed Acting Commissioner Tax Investigations.

Mr James Kiiza has been appointed Acting Commissioner Corporate Services.

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Stickers for the essential workers still valid-Police

By
Ronard Shabomwe
-
Fred Enanga, Police Spokesperson

The police have come out and cleared the air that the stickers that were issued out by the Ministry of Works and Transport to 26 categories of essential workers are still valid and helpful.

Senior Superintendent of Police – SSP Norman Musinga, also Kampala Metropolitan traffic police commander while addressing journalists at media center early this week had said police would not spare vehicles and drivers with essential stickers including those with letters of RDC because they had expired.

Adding that stickers that were no longer in use but advised to keep them for future purposes.

Hovever, Police publicist, Fred Enanga while addressing the journalists at Media Center on weekly inter Agency Joint task force Media briefing said, said they are received many calls as police from people seeking for clarification whether the stickers that were given to essential workers are still helpful.

“They are still calling us due to the conflicting information and interpretation that are out there, we want to come out and clarify that people who do have stickers even though they eased restrictions on the use of private vehicles and as we go forward we are looking at development of regarding public transport” Enanga explains.

Adding that their stickers are valid and they need to continue using them, however the time for curfew remains 6:30 up to 7pm.

Enanga further cautions that the delay in traffic jam should not be used as an excuse for being caught up in curfew time. And that everyone should therefore plan for the journeys well to avoid inconveniences.

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Relief as Tycoon Sudhir donates Shs10m to feed Ngamba Island chimps

By
Simon Kabayo
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THE executive Director Of Chimpanzee Trust Dr.Joshua Rukundo Acknowledged the Donation and appreciated the Support to Chimpanzees on Ngamba island.

City tycoon Sudhir Ruparelia has come to the rescue of Chimpanzees that were on the brink of starvation at Ngamba Island Sanctuary with a Shs10 million donation for buying food.
Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary mainly depends on money from visiting tourists to feed the Chimpanzees, but that took a turn for the worse when the country was put on a total lockdown to prevent the spread of the Corona virus.

With no money from tourists, the Chimpanzees were on the brink of starvation until Sudhir Ruparelia came to their rescue, much to the delight of Chimp-loving Ugandans.
A Shs10 million cheque was handed over To Dr Joshua Rukundo,the Executive Director of the Chimpanzee Trust, by Ms Valentina Ajay,an executive from the Ruparelia Foundation.

Sudhir Ruparelia has supported the Chimpanzee Sanctuary at Ngamba for the past 20 years and as the facility marked its 20th anniversary in 2018, Sudhir adopted a baby chimp that he named Ruparelia, further cementing his bond with the sanctuary.

Ruparelia has been particularly supportive to Ngamba Island as he bought the land where it seats and donated it to the sanctuary.
Staff at the sanctuary were excited that Sudhir has not forgotten his namesake-Ruparelia, the chimp, during these times of dire straits triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Ngamba Island hosts over 40 orphaned Chimpanzees rescued from different parts of East Africa.

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Three top URA Commissioners resign

By
Our Reporter
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Dicksons Kateshumbwa

Three top Uganda Revenue Authority Commissioners have thrown in a towel and resigned from their jobs.

The three are Dickson Kateshumbwa, the Commissioner Domestic Taxes, Henry Saka, Commissioner Tax Investigations and Silaj Kanyesigye Assistant Commissioner large taxpayers office.
Their resignation come at the time when CG John Musinguzi has just assumed office. Eagle Online has established that the problem messing up the former winning team at the tax board was the manner in which Musinguzi came after dropping of former CG Doris Akol. It is stated that an American lady who is believed to be at the centre of the confusion was introduced to the president as an expert on rental tax. However, this lady is said to have met the president through Attorney General before her contract could be issued, sources say she had already misled the president on how she would use Google maps to locate buildings that were reportedly evading rental tax.

Sources further reveal that after meeting the president through her proxies, she was rude to the URA team led by Ms Akol and Finance team led by Minister Matia Kasaija in two of the State House meetings. In one of the meetings, it is said the president asked the two teams from finance and URA as to why they were opposed to her ideas.
“Why don’t you allow her collect the revenues? I don’t care whether she takes 50 per cent of the revenues but what is hand is that we must collect rental tax.Have you been working with these landlords to under declare rental tax? a furious Museveni asked the teams.

However, after the meeting, Museveni is said to have constituted a three man team led by Dr. Era Suruma to study the proposal by the American lady who had just lost out in Kenya since President Uhuru Kenyatta had just dismissed same proposal on rental tax collection in Nairobi. The Dr. Suruma team had Suruma himself, John Musinguzi the current CG and another gentleman. The two rejected the report but Musinguzi is reportedly to have authored another minority secretly which he gave the president and hence thereafter, he was given the CG job.

Sources within URA say majority of the Commissioners and other senior managers have never come to terms with sacking of Akol and more so being replaced by a person who hasn’t been in the management of the tax body. So with the resignation of the three top commissioners, the country should expect more chaos at URA.

“Had Madam Akol been given same attention like Madam Kagina, we wouldn’t have these allegations of under performance but let us wait and see.” But these resignations come at the time when there reports that some senior managers were under investigations for corruption.

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KPMC Traffic Boss should be more pragmatic and sensitive in handling motorists post lock down

By
Guest Writer
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Mr. Deus Mukalazi

By Mukalazi Deus
Research Associate, Democracy and Rule of Law
Great Lakes Institute for Strategic Studies (GLISS).

On 27th May 2020, the Kampala Metropolitan Traffic Commander, SSP Norman Musinga issued a circular guiding on traffic during what he termed the Covid 19 period. The statement as has become the norm was circulated through all social media platforms. It’s important to note that this same statement was never officially shared on the official social media platforms of the Uganda Police Force including Facebook and Twitter.

In the circular, the Commander seeks to guide on how private cars should operate after the Presidential address on 19th may which eased the lock down by allowing private cars to get back on the road subject to observation of certain guidelines like carrying not more than three passengers including the driver and the occupants having a face mask on at all times. The cars were to resume on the 26th May 2020 and indeed this happened. The sudden ease of private cars saw a huge constraint on the traffic flow in the City and it was literally paralysed. As a result, many motorists were paralysed, and a good number failed to beat the curfew deadline of 7:00 PM which found them still stuck in traffic on the road. The Police responded by impounding the cars and arresting the motorists.

In the circular, a seemingly frustrated Traffic Commander blamed the traffic jam on what he called excitement, and ‘other motorists had nothing to do in town and just for the sake of getting out (sic) and move around town. Whether this is true or not is immaterial and a subject for another day, but it depicts an attitude of the police towards Ugandans and has a bearing on respect for inherent rights. The Uganda Police force, according to the constitution, shall be among other things professional and its members shall be citizens of Uganda of good character. With due respect to the Commander the tone and language of his circular is unprofessional and depicts Ugandans as people who are idle and wander around aimlessly. On the contrary, I want to believe that the people who stepped out on 26th May are trying to make ends meet. Some were going for crisis meetings at their workplaces where probably many of them were given the sad news of downsizing. Other had to go and seek medical examination and attention that was understandably impossible during the lock down. Some had the anxiety to go and check on their businesses and merchandise they had left unattended to downtown for over 60 days. It was inevitable and expected that the City would register such traffic on such a day. For a Senior Police officer to use such language to label them idle and arrest them for being stuck in jam and therefore unable to beat the curfew hour was a failure on his part not to use his discretion and pragmatically solve the situation.

The Deputy Resident City Commissioner, Nakawa,Mr. Burora Anderson, in a letter written to the Commander volunteered, and rightly so, to point out to him that the traffic jam has been exacerbated by the ongoing construction projects which are ironically aimed at easing traffic flow once completed. It’s important to note that there are construction works going on on John Babiiha Avenue, Clock Tower, Northern Bypass, Nakawa (Spear)-Ntinda and many others which he ought to know better.

Secondly, in the same circular, and perhaps based on the above attitude, the no nonsense senior traffic cop, outlined a number of traffic rules and regulations that they would be enforcing during this time which is well within their powers as per the Road safety Act of 1998 as Amended. However, there was an insensitive guideline given the situation. The move to impound all those vehicles which have not cleared their outstanding express penalty receipts. At a time when people have been under lock down for over two months, I found this “welcome” to the roads insensitive. This is the time when we need to show compassion and understanding to Ugandans and should be devising ways of waiving off certain financial obligations or if we can’t, defer them to a later date.

It’s important for police officers to always remember that they are supposed to guide the citizens and public. It’s a civilian force and this should not be left at the police training school. We should see this exhibited in how police officers deal and communicate with people, more so in situations like this, where covid19 has taken a toll on people’s lives.

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This is what Umeme is doing, to keep Uganda, especially our healthcare and manufacturing facilities switched on and running

By
Guest Writer
-
Mr. Selestino Babungi

IN SUMMARY In the last few days, there has been some substantial easing, by government, of some of the lockdown measures that have thus far, protected Uganda from the raging Covid-19. As most Ugandans begin to return to work, they will be happy to find everything running and the lights on, just like at their respective homes. Behind all this has been the 1,625 men and women at Umeme; Uganda’s largest power distributor, working together in partnership with the generation and transmission partners, to keep Uganda, especially the healthcare and manufacturing facilities switched on and running.

By Selestino Babungi

Covid-19, the deadly disease caused by the Coronavirus is now a local and a global reality. I would like to applaud all our frontline healthcare workers and other individuals and institutions who are working day and night under the strategic guidance of our president, to keep this pandemic at bay in Uganda.
As guided by the President, H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, while the healthcare workers fight the disease, care must be taken to keep the economy running, without compromising public health.
Umeme, accounts for over 97% of all electricity supply in the country and we therefore understand and appreciate that we must stay at work to keep the country switched on and running. I appreciate the efforts of our 1,625 staff and contractors who have remained committed to keeping the lights on. We also appreciate the support received from the security Joint Task Force, which has continued to support us during these tough times.
But Uganda can only keep the economy running, if we are all healthy and alive, which is why I urge all of us to join hands to fight the Coronavirus by adhering to all government directives and guidelines especially staying home and practicing the various safety measures that government has so articulately communicated.

Adjusting our processes to keep Uganda switched on

At Umeme- the safety of our customers, our staff, and the public has always been a priority. In light of the directives issued by the government, Umeme has had to inevitably make adjustments in our standard operating procedures to protect our staff and subsequently the public, but also ensure we reliably keep on the lights.
First of all, to reduce the level of human interaction, we have had to scale down on the number of staff coming to work physically. This has seen us reduce the number of staff per shift. To fit within the 12-hour night curfew, we have also had to create longer shifts of 12 hours in our contact centre and work management centre. We have further relocated staff required to be at work to service centers nearest to their places of residence.
The staff rationalisations however do not affect the technical teams. We have maintained the usual technical teams who attend to faults in Kampala, Entebbe & Mukono areas. Our entire upcountry faults teams are also fully operational. The specialised teams that attend to big breakdowns and vital installations such as factories, healthcare facilities, security installations, and other vital facilities are on standby.
The decongestion on our roads has also allowed us to respond to emergencies and technical faults faster and timelier. This is why for example even with the reduced workforce, our service levels remain high.

Umeme keeping health and manufacturing facilities running

Most referral health facilities, except Mulago National Referral Hospital, do not have dedicated power lines. They share these power lines with other users in the community in which these facilities are located. To ensure maximum efficiency during this delicate period, Umeme carried out preventive inspections and maintenance on these lines and the supporting substations to enhance their performance. We have also made sure that any emerging faults on these lines are prioritised ahead of other faults for faster restoration of supply.
Also the pre-paid meters to health facilities were replenished with credit to ensure continuity of supply without disconnection.
The continued investment in the distribution grid has significantly contributed to its stability and reliability. For this year, the plan is to invest a further US$ 80 million in substations, line works, and expansion of distribution zones. We also aim to convert the remaining 150,000 postpaid customers to pre-paid metering.

Protecting Umeme Staff and their families

For the safety of our staff, Umeme complies with the Ministry of Health Guidelines on CoVID-19 and has provided the required personal protective equipment like working goggles, hand sanitizers, vehicle sanitizers, and gloves, etc. Our field technical teams are under strict instructions to adhere to Ministry of Health guidelines while attending to network operations and technical customer service requests.
We urge the public to boost the efficacy of these initiatives by equally practicing the ministry of health guidelines, especially maintaining the recommended 4 meters social distance while dealing with our staff.
The investments in technology have enabled us to continue serving our customers through the use of digital channels at our contact centre, payments through digital channels, remote network management through the use of SCADA and remote working of our staff. Our operations would have been significantly derailed during the lockdown period if we had not embraced technology over the years.
Let us stay safe, stay home, and save lives.

Selestino Babungi, is the Managing Director, Umeme Ltd.

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End of Shs360b MTN, URA tax row as Tax Appeal Tribunal says it is Shs20b

By
Geoffery Serugo
-
MTN-Uganda CEO-Wim Vanhelleputte

The Tax Appeal Tribunal has ruled that mobile telecom giant, MTN is to pay Shs20 billion to Uganda Revenue Authority in the Shs360 tax row.

URA claimed that MTN and a host of other companies had under declared their revenue and hence paying less tax to the tax authority. URA based their claims on the whistleblower who alleged that the communication giant was not declaring all the revenue in order to evade the taxes.

Contrary to the allegations made that the tax evasion was Shs360, URA carried out an audit and discovered that MTN Uganda had alleged not paid VAT amounting to 20,053,441,670 for the period 2014-2017.

However, a senior executive at MTN-Uganda in a telephone interview with Eagle Online said they intend to appeal against the Shs20 billion as well because the allegations against them were untrue.

“From the word go, we said were clean because we have never hidden anything or under declared the revenues but this was a clear mudslinging by some individuals whose aim we couldn’t tell but like fate would be, it was Shs360 billion but now the Tax Appeal Tribunal has brought it o Shs20 billion to which we shall appeal because we are clean” The MTN executive said on condition of anonymity.

Suing under MTN Sea Shared Services Ltd (MTN SSS), MTN denies liability to pay taxes amounting to $89.6 million and another $528,000, which according to URA, accrued from under-declaration of earnings on the lucrative Mobile Money, and information technology services provided to MTN Uganda between December 2015 and February 2016 by its mother company MTN Sea Shared Services (MTN SSS) Ltd.

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Chief Justice Katureebe opens Courts

By
Our Reporter
-
INAUGURATED JTI GOVERNING COUNCIL: Chief Justice Bart Katurebe

The Chief Justice Bart Katureebe has directed that courts open for “partial operations” while observing strict Standard Operating Procedures(SOPs) like wearing face masks, temperature measurements,sanitisation and social distancing.

However, Katureebe clarified that Courts shall continue to hear applications and urgent matters only until there is a general opening up of public transport.
“All judicial and non-Judicial officers, litigants and the public shall at all material times observe the SOPs as established by the Ministry of Health from time to time while accessing court premises. All Judicial and non-Judicial officers and Litigants must at all-time wear a face mask while in court premises, “Katureebe’s circular reads.
Katureebe directed that criminal cases shall be limited to; plea taking for magistrate’s courts, bail applications across the board, plea bargains across the board, appeals for the appellate courts.

These restrictions, directed the Chief Justice, shall continue in force until prisoners are able to be produced in Court.
The circular adds that: All Judicial officers shall continue to write and deliver judgements in all Courts. The Audio-Visual facilities put in place by the Judiciary shall continue to be used where necessary, besides other methods of conducting hearings,”

It was copied to the Deputy Chief Justice, Principal Judge, all Justices of the Supreme Court, all Judges of the High Court, Secretary to the Judiciary, Chief Registrar, all magistrates and all Judiciary staff.

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HOUSING FINANCE BANK: Driving convenience through digitization

By
Guest Writer
-
Mr. Wycliffe Natweeta

By Wycliffe Natweeta

COVID-19 has paved the way for digital transformation as businesses shift operations to cope with office closures, restricted movement and supply interruption.
Inevitably, most industries are operating in a constant state of flux, and businesses are rapidly adapting strategies to evolve with rapidly changing consumer behavior. In many cases, we have seen the utilization of virtual streaming to replace meetings, online conferences and events, online purchases replacing physical transactions. As many individuals manage with the new measures, organizations are coming up with more productive ways to support the evolving developments and in the end achieve a holistic positive ripple effect.
Housing Finance Bank is one of the financial institutions that has in recent years embarked on its digital transformation journey and has since delivered a range of digital products, services and solutions. We caught up with the Bank’s Head Distribution Channels and Customer Experience, Mr. Wycliffe Natweeta to further dissect digitization during and after COVID-19 and how the Bank is positioned to meet the evolving changes to suit their respective customer needs and requirements:

Tell us about Housing Finance Bank and digitization?

Housing Finance Bank was founded in 1967 as a housing finance company. The company became a fully licensed commercial Bank in November 2007, after acquiring a commercial Banking license from the Bank of Uganda. Housing Finance Bank is the leading mortgage lender in the country. In 2013, the Bank embarked on its digital transformation journey. This saw the automation of many systems that later fed into the launch of a range of digital products in 2018. To date, the Bank has a variety of digital channels that range from HFB Mobile Banking, Internet Banking, HFB MasterCard Service and Agent Banking.

How convenient are the services offered as part of the HFB digital channels?

Housing finance bank is one of the fortunate banks to have been digitally ready to continue serving customers when the lockdown struck in late March 2020. As previously communicated, a year ago, we launched our digital channels which positioned us to be the bank of choice before, during and after COVID-19. Our internationally accepted MasterCard service for example spells convenience because of its wide acceptance hence one can use it for a range of services both online and at various merchant points. This is just one of the many other channels that include both retail and corporate internet banking, Agent banking, HFB Mobile banking among others. All these services come in conveniently at a time like this when we have more restrictions on movement, accessibility and physical transactions. Everything can be done online from making payments, deposits, checking balances and cash transactions altogether. Even better, our transaction charge waivers for our customers during this period have made it easier to utilize these services.

They say, the future is digital: how would you say The Bank has positioned itself to fit well into this future?
Digitization of operational processes has been on the radar for most companies and organizations hence the saying above: “the future is indeed digital. As a Bank, this journey has been one that we embarked on since 2013. This is all hinged on providing an improved customer value proposition through the provision of reliable, convenient and affordable services and solutions. With this rapid evolution of digital processes we are positive for the new mindset that is aligned towards digital utilization focusing on the future with an openness to serve our customers during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Customer self-service and experience is a trend that has developed long before COVID-19, how has this accelerated the Bank’s solutions to provide a smooth customer journey?
Customer experience has and will still remain top priority on our list. We have made deliberate efforts to tailor-make our solutions to suit our customer’s needs. Even when the human factor remains present for verification, we have still endeavored to digitize most of our customer processes and transactions. Our customers can reliably check their balance, place orders, and make payments within different locations with our range of digital channels.

Technology is the glue that keeps operations running in these times of uncertainty and the actions businesses take now can reduce the recovery period once trading returns to normality. As priorities shift in with the hit of COVID-19, we remain committed to setting the foundation to ensure and reap long-term benefits of customer engagement and loyalty.
How will your digital strategy adopt to protect the customers information against fraud?
We are in a period of rampant cybercrime and we acknowledge there are growing concerns about the massive amount of personal information that customers provide to the Banks and the vulnerability that it creates, however, this information aids us to design our solutions based on the information available so as to serve our customers better. We have put in place measures to ensure that our customer’s information is protected, remember, security of any kind in the Bank can no longer be primarily seen as a backend prevention function but as a function is well monitored in a regular basis.

Any last words for the customers and everyone else out there?

The bank has strategically positioned itself to fit in the lives of customers. We have personalized our services to serve a wide range of customers both retail and corporate. We are also aware of the impact Covid-19 has created most especially within the service sector which has made it next to impossible to have a face to face interaction with customers. Due to the current situation, we have seen steady growth in the number of customers who are signing up and utilizing our digital platforms during this time. However, we are also aware that we have a section of customers that have not enrolled onto our digital platforms, and wish to further advice that, our digital solutions are easily accessible. One can open an account with us and enroll immediately or download our HFB Mobile app on Google play store, I-store or by dialing *225#. Our internet Banking is a self-service feature that can be accessed by following this link https://ebanking.housingfinance.co.ug/iportalweb/iRetail@1
or simply visiting our website, www.housingfinance.co.ug. I therefore call upon our customers and everyone else who has not enrolled onto any of our platforms to do so and enjoy a wide range of convenient, hassle-free solutions.

We have also embarked on our journey for digital account-opening and onboarding solutions to enable both retail and business customer applicants to open accounts in just minutes and thus making digital account origination, onboarding and cross-selling a simple, smart and secure process.

Remember that you can also reach us through our customer contact center on 0417-803000 for further inquiries and also acquaint yourselves more on how best you can utilize our digital channels and processes.

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NRM ready to consider reports from opposition political parties on performance -Lumumba

By
Trevor S Baleke
-
IPOD summit

Justine Kasule Lumumba, the Secretary General of the National Resistance Movement has told opposition political parties in Uganda to audit and make reports on the performance of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).

Addressing members of the IPoD as JEMA took over the chairmanship of the body from Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), Lumumba said the ruling government would take reports from the opposition in good faith.

She proposed that the IPOD leadership in chair should consider writing periodic audit reports to create check points for the NRM government instead of street criticism.

“Play your roles of auditing, monitoring and supervising the government in power. We are ready to take such written reports in good faith,” she said.

Lumumba also urged the political parties to work together for the good of all Ugandans.

She challenged the outgoing chair (FDC) to give support to the incoming IPoD leadership under the chairmanship of JEMA.

“We have given you all the support while in chair as our IPOD leaders, be there for others and don’t dodge the subsequent summit again,” she said.

At the event, FDC’s Nandala Mafabi handed over to JEEMA as the new chair of the IPOD Council at Kabila Club.

On the behalf of JEMA, Deputy Secretary General, Fredrick Kasajja received the instrument of power on behalf of his boss Mohammad Katerega who was absent.

Lumumba also commended the IPOD Summit and Council members in Parliament who have always whipped the central government to consider releasing funds to Political Parties. She identified them as Hon. Jimmy Akena (UPC), Hon Nandala Mafabi (FDC) and Hon. Asuman Basalirwa of JEEMA.

Lumumba further called on sister Parties to take a front seat in holding candid discussions with the EC on Electoral related matters. She pledged her full support & availability for the task.

Lumumba delivered a written apology from the NRM national chairman and head of state, Yoweri Museveni for physically missing out at the function.

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