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BoU deputy governor rejects constitutional amendment on Central Bank’s board composition

By
Our Reporter
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Deputy Governor, Dr Michael Atingo-Ego

Bank of Uganda has rejected proposals contained in a Constitutional Amendment bill seeking to separate the powers and office of the Governor from the Management of the Central Bank.

BoU officials led by Deputy Governor, Michael Atingi-Ego Tuesday appeared before Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee that is scrutunising the Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2020 tabled by Igara East MP, Michael Mawanda in May 2020.

The Bill is intended to remove the Governor and Deputy Governor from being chairperson and deputy chairperson of BoU’s Board of Directors respectively. The Bill wants the Governor to act as the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Bank.

MP Wawanda defended his move saying the constitutional amendment was intended to ensure that the Central Bank Board remains independent of the management so that it can carry out supervision without interference and conflict of interest.

However, BoU wants to status-quo to remain for the sake of Uganda’s financial sector stability.

Atingi-Ego told the Committee that the Governor has key targets to achieve especially in relation to monetary policy, price stability and if the current law is tampered with, it would be difficult achieve those targets in case of a conflict between Governor and Board Chairperson.

He argued that the case isn’t unique in Uganda and that 86 Central Banks around the world have the Governor as the Board Chairperson.

“The risk of conflict, especially for a board with public policy formulation roles is minimized by fusing the chairmanship of the board with Governorship and Chairmanship board held by the same person,” Atingi-Ego said.

BoU also rejected the proposal to exclude Deputy Governor from holding a seat on the Board.

However, MPs on the Committee rejected BoU’s argument, saying that the current status quo is what has created conflicts within the Central Bank. The MPs say the proposed amendment is intended to restore sanity within the Central Bank and there is need to end this fusion.

Bugweri County MP, Abdu Katuntu rejected the protest from the Central Bank not to separate Board from Management, saying the current mode is ancient and there is need to run the Central Bank in accordance with current corporate governance structures.

“Which office in this country that supervises the Governor and the Deputy Governor? None. Because we can’t have a vacuum where you have a Governor and Deputy Governor who are unsupervised. You even don’t have performance reports or evaluation of the Governor and Deputy Governor,” said Katuntu.

He added: “They are actually a law out of themselves. Because the Board that would have carried out such functions, he is actually the boss. I still think, we need to sort this problem out. When you look at what we call corporate governance, this issue of fusion of management and the board has since been abandoned.”

Mwenge South MP, Aston Kajara said that currently, the Governor as the Chief Executive of the Bank and the Board Chairperson, acts as the accountant, audits himself and also the cashier is all intertwined.

“Even in the bible, there is what we call the trinity, the powers aren’t so fused and in case of the Bank, it is all in one. The Governor can’t be omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. This marriage between the Board and Management is what we think isn’t proper,” said Kajara.

Atingi-Ego also rejected the proposal to end the practice of Board to approve the budget of the Central Bank and bring it back to Parliament, saying the current practice is based on international best practices and majority of Central Banks have their budgets approved by their Boards.

He added that the approach is intended to preserve central bank financial and functionality autonomy when taking decisions especially those regarding monetary policy and financial stability.

“The proposal effectively introduces a requirement for an external body to determine which monetary policy operations are justifiable, at what cost they should be conducted. Such an approach would ultimately raise questions on exactly which entity is accountable for monetary policy since the central bank would cease to be fully in charge of the choice on what is appropriate,” Atingi-Ego said.

He added that there is no need for Parliament to poke its nose into the Central Bank’s budget because if it was the case of separation of powers, there is already an Audit and Governance Committee of the Board that checks on management and its resolutions are final and binding on the Board and management.

However, MPs led by Bugiri Municipality, Asuman Basalirwa rejected his argument saying the body was established in contravention of the constitution that places overall powers of the Central Bank in the Board.

“How is this charter constituted? What is its legal efficacy? Where is it derived either from the Act or constitution that its resolutions should be binding? Who constitutes it? How is it funded? And how do you guard against its compromise?” Basalirwa said.

Mawanda drafted and tabled the constitutional amendment following the failure by Government to table amendments to restore sanity in management of Bank of Uganda as recommended by Parliament’s Committee of Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) after investigations into the controversial closure of seven commercial banks.

Parliament’s report had recommended for the separation of the offices of Governor and Deputy Governor from management so as to improve efficiency in the running of the Central Bank.

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Champions League ‘last eight’ confirmed

By
Our Reporter
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UCL draw balls

Bayern and Chelsea have joined Dortmund, Liverpool, Manchester City, Paris, Porto and Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

Chelsea made it to the quarter-finals of the Champions League after defeating La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid 3-0 on aggregate. Olivier Giroud put The Blues ahead in the first leg and Hakim Ziyech doubled Chelsea’s lead in the second leg before Emerson Palmieri sealed it all.

Liverpool and Manchester City also secured safe passage to the quarters after defeating RB Leipzig and Borussia Mönchengladbach respectively with a similar score line 4-0.

Defending champions eased past Italy’s Lazio with a 6-2 aggregate win while 13-time record-winners Real Madrid eliminated Atalanta 4-1 on aggregate.

Paris Saint Germain (PSG) knocked out Barcelona to qualify for the quarterfinals with  a 5-2 win on aggregate while Dortmund knocked out Sevilla 5-4 on aggregate in a close encounter.

The draw takes place on Friday 19 March at the House of European Football in Nyon, Switzerland. It will feature match-ups for the quarter-finals and semi-finals.

There are also no seeding, group or country restrictions as is the case in the Last 16 draw, meaning any team would be able to face any of the other teams in the draw.

Quarter-finals

First legs: 6/7 April

Second legs: 13/14 April

Semi-finals

First legs: 27/28 April

Second legs: 4/5 May

Final

Saturday 29 May (Atatürk Olympic Stadium, Istanbul)

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Tanzania President John Pombe Magufuli is dead

By
Geoffery Serugo
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RIP: John Pombe Magufuli.

Tanzania President John Pombe Magufuli is dead. He was aged 62 years.

Tanzanian Vice President Samia Suluhu has just announced in a televised statement

The Vice President said Magufuli died of heart attack which has been treating for the last ten years.

She said the heart attack  hit him on March 17, 2021, at about 6pm at Mzena Hospital in Dar es Salaam where he was admitted on March 14.

It’s been more than two weeks since Tanzanians last saw Magufuli in public. Last year, Tanzania lost its former President Benjamin Mkapa died of similar incidence. However, the public said he had died from #Covid-19.

Magafuli becomes the second president to die from ‘heart complications’ from East Africa after former Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza.

 

 

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Five arrested in Kawempe for alleged robberies

By
Our Reporter
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One of the suspects

The territorial Police in Kawempe have arrested five suspects on allegations of participating in a spate of robberies in Kawempe and its surrounding areas.

According to the Kampala Metropolitan Police Deputy Spokesperson Luke Owoyesigire, Police officers who were on routine patrol in the area intercepted a motor vehicle registration number UBH 295F Passo that was driven by Michael Yiga, 28, a mechanic. On the vehicle’s dashboard was a UPDF cap.

When the vehicle occupant was tasked to explain how he got into possession of the cap, he intimated that it belonged to the owner of the vehicle. The mechanic led the officers to the owner of the vehicle identified as Ronald Ssenyonjo.

Ssenyonjo denied owning the UPDF cap, but he said he often hires his vehicle to two suspected soldiers, whom he suspects to have forgotten the cap in the car. He named the two suspected soldiers.

Luckily, the two suspected soldiers; Kanyehamye Kakistone, who was later found out to be a deserter in the UPDF, and Juma Kaya, a civilian, had visited Kanyanya Police Station to stand surety for another suspect in detention.

The suspect in detention had been arrested on offences of aggravated robbery of Shs1m and an Infinix mobile phone.

In an interaction with Kanyehamye and Kaya, police officers discovered that they are the suspects’ accomplices. They were also arrested and a search at their homes ordered.

During a search, detectives recovered a number of suspected stolen items and military uniforms.

It should be noted that police has in the past recorded and investigated cases where people allegedly in Uniforms belonging to security have stopped persons and motorcycle riders robbing them of their items and motorcycles and we highly suspect this is the same group.

Owoyesigire said the suspects are being held on offences of aggravated robbery and being possession of government stores and they will be arraigned in courts of law as soon as investigations are complete.

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Standard Chartered donates Shs750m to support youth in Northern Uganda

By
Geoffery Serugo
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Albert Saltson CEO, SCBU hands over a dummy cheque to the Minister of Agriculture, animal industry and Fisheries, Hon. Vincent Sempijja and Petra Van Haren Country Man

Standard Chartered Bank through the Standard Chartered Foundation donated Shs750 million to support 600 Youth in Agribusiness as part of the ‘Futuremakers programme’.

The donation is earmarked to support micro, small and medium agri-businesses in Northern Uganda districts of Lira and Nebbi that have been negatively impacted by the economic downturn caused by the pandemic and further escalated by the slow recovery process that has had far reaching effects for vulnerable groups like; women, refugees and persons with disabilities.

The programme will be implemented by its NGO partners; ICCO Cooperation and Youth Business International through ‘High Flyer program’.

‘High Flyer program’ will provide a holistic package of support that will include; entrepreneurship, business development and digital marketing skills training, linkages to finance and new markets, mentorship and recovery cash grants to facilitate the efficiency and sustainability of their businesses.  100 of the most vulnerable youths will receive cash grants worth Shs2 million each to revive their businesses.

Albert Saltson, the Chief Executive Officer, Standard Chartered Bank Uganda in his remarks said; “Our donation today through the Standard Chartered foundation is a continuation of our #Covid-19 emergency relief measures that we embarked on last year that culminated into the donation of Shs1.6 billion through over eight NGOs to support various communities navigate and stay afloat during the pandemic.”

“We have stepped up to go beyond banking. We have a track record of a long history of supporting and empowering the communities in Uganda for the 109 years we have been in existence in Uganda. This attests to our brand promise “Here for good” and our values that indeed we are #BetterTogether.” he said

He said there has never been a better time for different players to come together not only to jointly fight against the #Covid-19 pandemic but to also seed sustainable projects that will secure the future of the youth and open social and economic opportunities including job creation.

Petra Van Haren Country Manager – ICCO Uganda said; “ICCO is a Dutch international organization with a vision of empowering people that build sustainable livelihoods within a society that upholds their rights. Through interventions that focus on blending finance, climate resilient food systems, new technologies and youth entrepreneurship, we seek to strengthen food and nutrition security and economic empowerment for smallholder farmers and SMEs.”

In partnership with YBI, our High Flyers program has to date been able to facilitate the transition of over 500 youth start-ups in Northern Uganda from micro enterprises to small businesses through targeted mentorship and training.

“We are excited about the partnership with the Standard Chartered Foundation as it will boost our program capacity to further strengthen the resilience of young entrepreneurs with critical adjustment skills that can contribute to economic recovery in Northern Uganda after the #Covid-19 pandemic.” she said

Minister of Agriculture, animal industry and Fisheries Vincent Ssempijja, said; “I commend the efforts of Standard Chartered Bank, ICCO Uganda and YBI for the timely support towards the youth who are grappling with the devastating impact of the pandemic and for supplementing the Government of Uganda efforts by investing in youth programme that will tackle inequality and promote greater economic inclusion for young entrepreneurs in Nebbi and Lira.”

“I appeal to the beneficiaries to put the skills and recovery cash grants they will receive to good use. Be good stewards and ensure your impact in your districts is far-reaching and is felt for the good of the entire community and our country.”

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Ruparelia’s Premier Recruitment Ltd opens office in Mbarara

By
Our Reporter
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Premier Recruitment staff at the Mbarara regional office

Premier Recruitment Ltd, a subsidiary of Ruparelia Group of Companies has opened their first regional branch in Mbarara – Western Uganda.

The regional office located along Kakoba round about in Kakoba division- Mbarara city is expected to solve the problem of accessibility of their services especially from the region residents.

According to the Company’s Marketing, Public Relations and Activations Manager, Amon Baita, the office has been launched as part of their big plan to save their customers across the country from the inconveniences and challenges that come with seeking for jobs abroad from Kampala based recruitment agencies .

Premier Recruitment Ltd also launched a sensitization campaign dubbed “Youth Employment program” that was graced by District Senior Labour officer, Africana Abomugisha.

The company unveiled Narris Nuwagaba as the company’s Regional office representative, who will be directly reporting to the head of marketing and Agency department at head office in Kampala.

“We needed to come closer to our customers because it is a dream for us to connect Ugandans to  opportunities,” Baita said.

The Mbarara district senior labour officer, Abomugisha added that “this is the best opportunity for the people from western Uganda to access the jobs from abroad.”

He also cautioned the Premier Recruitment management not to be over excited and end up committing mistakes like those of past companies but benchmark on their past mistakes to strengthen and bolster their service delivery as promised to their customers.

He also urged them to work hand in hand work with relevant security agencies.

The Company Operations manager Chandana Chaudrey asked members of the public to use only Bank slips, Momo pay or through regional agency office as payment systems while making registration.

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Former EOC boss Ntambi spotted at parliament as she lobbies for contract renewal

By
Our Reporter
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Former embattled Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) Chairperson Sylvia Muwebwa Nabatanzi has been spotted at Parliament with the Director Clerks in Parliament Emmanuel Bakwega.

Sources say Ntambi was in parliament seeking to meet the Speaker Rebecca Kadaga over her contract renewal in Equal opportunities Commission.

Thetroubled  Ntambi has allegedly refused to hand over office as she continues to play hide and seek with the government. For over a month now, she still hasn’t yet handed over office and the official government vehicle of number plate UG 0931T to the commission which she has used to come to Parliament The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Aggrey Kibenge earlier ordered the EOC chairperson to handover office on February 5, 2021, a few days after her contract had expired.

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New law to ease administering of property across borders in offing

By
Our Reporter
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Parliament of Uganda

Parliament has passed the Probate Resealing (Amendment) Bill, 2019 that seeks to ease the administration of property across borders.

The Bill serves to cater for an Act entitled, “The Probate (Resealing) (Amendment) Act, 2019”, which will amend the Probate (Resealing) Act, Cap 160.

The new Act will repeal any reference to the Commonwealth and British courts, and to align it to the Constitution of Uganda.

The Bill was introduced in Parliament by the Deputy Attorney General on 12 August 2019, and was referred to the Committee on Legal and Parliamentary Affairs for scrutiny.

During a plenary session chaired by Speaker Rebecca Kadaga on Tuesday, 16 March 2021, Jovah Kamateeka, a member of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, presented the committee findings and recommendations to the House.

In her presentation, Kamateeka said that due to passage of time, some aspects of Probate (Resealing) Act Cap 160 that came into force on 30 May 1936 had become outdated, especially in light of the Constitution, government policies, emerging, international best practices and the legal environment.

According to the committee report, letters or probate granted by a court other than a court of a country belonging to the Commonwealth could not be enforced in Uganda, which limited Ugandans in those countries from benefiting from the provisions of the Act and succession laws in general.

“This Act, therefore, needs to be expanded to reflect Uganda’s position in the global world…this Bill, therefore, seeks to remove the limitation inherent in the Act in order to give it broader application,” Kamateeka told MPs.

Among the proposals of the Bill is in clause 2 whereby section 1 of the principal Act is to be amended by deleting the definition of the words for the words, “British court in a foreign country” and “probate” and “letters of administration”; the last two of which the committee rejected.

The committee observed that deleting the word, “probate” and “letters of administration” would create a lacuna as to the extent of the principal Act, given that the principal Act dealt with the sealing of probate and letters of administration.

“The committee notes that the object of the amendment to the principal Act is to expand the application of the Act beyond countries in the Commonwealth.

The committee further notes that whereas countries in the Commonwealth use the terminology “probate or letters of administration” to refer to the authority given to a person by court to administer the estate of a deceased person, countries applying the civil law system, use a different terminology,” reads the Committee report in part.

The Bill also proposes to amend section 2 of the principal Act in order to expand it beyond the countries that are in the Commonwealth and probate issued from British courts, whereby the expansion of the provisions result in the enforcement of probate and letters from any country in the world.

The committee observed that the amendment was practical since it took into account the fact that a Ugandan or a person domiciled in Uganda may have property in Uganda as well as in any other country in the world, and thus grants such a person the ability to have his or her property managed in Uganda; or in any other country as long as there is a letter or probate from such a country or Uganda.

The committee also proposes in clause 4, to amend section 3 of the principal Act by inserting a new sub-clause (2) that requires letters and probate not to be resealed in Uganda unless the relevant laws of the country that issued them are in conformity with the Constitution of Uganda.

Kamateeka told the House that the committee rejected the proposal citing that it was ambiguous because it required the laws of another country to conform to Uganda’s constitution and yet the Constitution did not make provision for the resealing of letters and probate in Uganda.

“In light of the above, the committee recommends that clause 3 is amended to ensure that countries provide reciprocal enforcement of letters or probate issued by courts in Uganda before they can have letters or probate issued by courts in that particular country enforced in Uganda,” she said.

The Bill also amended sub-section three of the principal Act by inserting three more clauses that cater for letters of administration or probate obtained from a court of a partner state of the East African Community being enforced as if the same was obtained in a court of law in Uganda.

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IUEA moves to produce electric motorcycles

By
Geoffery Serugo
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Electric motorcycle

The International University of East Africa (IUEA), in partnership with Clean Air Initiative Africa and with support from the United Nations, is set to produce electric motorcycles. The motorcycles are expected to reduce gas emissions, which cause pollution.

The Clean Air Initiative was developed as part of the Social and Political Drivers Action Area of the 2019 Climate Action Summit, led by the World Health Organisation, together with the Governments of Peru and Spain, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and the International Labour Organisation.

The pilot project has been ongoing and is in its fifth year; with three prototypes already done. The university is also working with the energy ministry and the assistant commissioner for technical planning.

Dr Gerald Banaga Baingi, he said: “The project will cause a paradigm shift to a low carbon development path. This is the beginning of the greening of the transport industry in Uganda and the region.”

Dr Banaga has been involved in the research and concept development in this initiative.

The motorcycles use electric power and a charge of Sh2,500 can go for a distance of 70 km. This is equivalent to over two litres of fuel estimated at Sh9,000, which is more expensive.

The University already had 50 motorcycles and the plan is to have 10,000 and more motorcycles to cover the entire country, as well as the region. The project has been made possible with the support of the United Nations.

This will be used to inform the business on the development of appropriate motorcycles for the Ugandan market. The result will be mass scale and uptake of electric mobility in the country.

The university vice-chancellor Dr Emeka Akaezuwa, said: “Will facilitate a shift to electric motorcycles for Uganda through awareness raising, policy reforms, fiscal incentives, communication activities and creating an enabling environment for local manufacturing of electric motorcycles.”

Dr Emeka added: “Motorcycles are considered the low hanging fruit of electric mobility and thus a first priority to moving to electric mobility, because they provide net carbon benefits, regardless of the “upstream” electricity carbon mix, are more cost competitive than electric cars, don’t need new infrastructure and are a key solution in addressing urban air pollution.”

The university’s resident director, Hassan Alwi, said: “The project will lead the country to shift the motorcycle fleet to electric, so that by 2022, at least 30% of new sales will be electric motorcycles with a long term target of a complete switch over to electric motorcycles.”

Alwi is also in charge of youth development and local and international partnerships.

“This will result in at least 900,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide saved in a seven-year project. The projected carbon dioxide savings for the first fleet turnover after the project (7 years) is at least 6.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide,” he said.

Alwi said the future savings will be even higher because the fleet will continue to grow, and a larger percentage of this growth will be electric, until it reaches 100% electric in the future.

“At that point, savings will be at least three million tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. The project is using lessons from China, where more than 250 million electric motorcycles have been introduced and where petrol motorcycles have been phased out in favour of electric versions in their major cities,” he adds.

Alwi also said there is a need for the government to reduce taxes, for the importation of the materials to assemble the bikes. He added: “The initiative will make the bodaboda business more lucrative, on top of making it cheaper for students and the common people to use the new stronger bikes. Most importantly, we will be saving the environment from pollution.”

He also appealed to well-wishers and government to join them so as to ensure that the project succeeds

Dr Emeka said the transport fares for people using motorcycles will be reduced by over 55%. To take off, the project has included testing the electric motorcycles. The objective is to assess their performance and to raise awareness for electric mobility in order to act as a launch pad for the mass scale up of electric mobility in the country.

The motorcycles will be distributed to different stakeholders to test them, so as to provide the much needed information on their performance and also to create awareness. The recipients include public and non-public entities, such as local governments, hospitals, community service organisations and commercial motorcycle operating companies, among others.

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Uganda Breweries contributes Shs330 million to National Tree Planting campaign

By
Geoffery Serugo
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Uganda Breweries contributes Shs330 million to national tree planting campaign

Uganda Breweries Limited has handed over a 330 million shillings contribution to the Ministry of Water and Environment towards the 2021 National Tree Planting Campaign; ROOTs (Running Out of Trees). This money is to go towards national mobilization of public and private sectors to plant 40 Million Trees Countrywide by May 17th, a day that has been gazette as the National Tree Planting Day.

Speaking at the Cheque Handover Ceremony, Juliana Kagwa, the Corporate Relations Director of Uganda Breweries Limited acknowledged that it is good business for Corporate and Private companies to rise to the challenge of tackling the environmental crisis before us today. “If the forest cover is depleting at the rate of 122,000 hectares per year, and Uganda has 4.9m hectares, if we do nothing, in 40 short years, Uganda will be left bare. We must therefore put in motion the process and tools necessary to ensure that this beautiful, green country of ours continues to sustain our livelihoods as we pledge to sustain its survival.” she said

The Running out of Trees (ROOTs) campaign is an initiative between, the Ministry of Water and Environment in collaboration with private sector players whose main objective is to work together to fast track National Forest Restoration Goals and Commitments which includes a plan to restore 2.5 Million hectares of degraded landscapes by 2030.

The Permanent Secretary, Minister for Water and Environment Alfred Okot Okidi reiterated the need for private companies to join public and government projects that have national reach and impact instead of leaving the burden to Government alone. This cheque of 330 Million is a good boost to our fundraising campaign that will see us physically visit many other corporate companies to join this initiative. The task before us is a great one, planting 40 million trees is no mean feat. We know that these are challenging times for business, but I would like to call upon other corporate companies to dig deep into their pockets and rise to the occasion to make this edition of Running out of Trees a success.

The 2021 Edition of the Run will in observance of the COVID19 Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) hold a short 10Km Run on March 21, 2021 (International Day of Forests), starting from Parliament through Nakasero and Kololo – The event will host participants not exceeding 200 people drawn from Heads of Corporate Companies, Diplomatic Missions, Government and Cultural Institutions. To involve the public and attract mass participation, we shall this year launch a ROOTs mobile app to raise awareness and mobilize funds needed to procure plant and maintain the 40million trees across the country.

Members of the public will be asked to contribute only 1,500 via the Mobile Phone App. This cost caters for seedling, the planting exercise, manning the tree until it is at a stage where it can survive on its own and for paying TREE ADOPTION the company that is responsible for continuous monitoring and evaluation of this process.

The 2021 Running out of Trees campaign will be a 5-year project seeking to plant over 200 million trees in that period. Uganda Breweries Limited, among others, shall be leading an effort to plant 40 million trees in 8 hours every year on National Tree Planting Day.  This is the second year running that Uganda Breweries is spearheading this partnership with the Ministry of Water and Environment.

Uganda Breweries Limited has also over the years contributed to other Tree Planting Initiatives and has so far, planted over 300 hectares of trees in Navugulu central forest reserve, Gangu forest reserve & Nawandigi Forest Reserve at the corporate level and staff led initiatives that have seen massive tree planting in Kamokoli community in Eastern Uganda and Nabitoli Catholic Parish, Budaka in Wakiso with different partnerships like NFA and Rotary Club.

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