Henry Mukasa
2 October 2008
Kampala — The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) is a den of wolves, feasting on huge amounts of money which legitimate beneficiaries cannot access, the Inspector General of Government, Justice Faith Mwondha, has said.
Releasing the findings of a probe into the management of workers' savings, Justice Mwondha yesterday said the fund, which was meant to provide social security to citizens, has been turned into an "anti kulyamu buli" (let me pilfer and move on) project.
"You leave all that money in the hands of wolves and they spend it the way they want," Mwondha stated. NSSF portfolio stands at one trillion shillings.
The IGG said the inspectorate of government had received 100 complaints from people who have not got their money because of the unfavourable 55-years age limit stipulated by the law.
"Is that the kind of law you want to maintain to enrich a few people who can reach the top?" she wondered.
The half-day seminar was meant to officially release the findings and recommendations on the "Systems Report on the Management of Members' Funds by NSSF" at Grand Imperial Hotel. The board and management of NSSF, as well as workers' MPs, were invited but none turned up.
Mwondha said after the inspectorate's probe of the botched $225m Nsimbe Housing project, only her recommendation for the reconstitution of the NSSF board was implemented.
Even then, she said, the board was not well constituted. The IGG said NSSF continues to flout procurement procedures. "The only thing they have done is consult the Solicitor General, giving them clumsy advice," she said, to murmurs. "Yes," she affirmed. "I have no kind words." In an emotional speech, Mwodha also blasted lawyers whose greed for money she said had perverted justice.
"These thieves who collude and pervert justice, I am saying lawyers and I will not specify because we have all turned into thieves, these small bribes you take in darkness you can't hide them from God. The days are coming when you will cry and burn in the lake of fire," Mwondha warned.
The IGG said a wrong perception had been created, even among students, that the legal fraternity is focused on amassing wealth, is destroying the nation and mentoring a criminal minded generation.
She said common expressions used by Ugandans like "nfuniramu wa? (What is my cut)" and "kangende mukuule (Let me extort)" were perpetrating corruption. The IGG saluted the President for putting in place systems to fight corruption but lamented that politicians and some officials had let him down.
She said detecting and preventing corruption was better than fighting it after it had taken place.
"Can you tell me how to recover the people who died of AIDS when the money (for ARVs) was stolen? Can you bring back the children who died because some (immunisation) drug thieves wanted to buy skyscrapers and become flamboyant?" she asked. The study, she stressed, was not prompted by the current probe into the Temangalo land purchase. Instead, she said, it was part of a work plan drawn in 2006 to uncover conduits of corruption and reduce incidence.
Other departments being watched by the study are the Administrator General's office, the Ministry of Education and the pension department of the Ministry of Public Service. Not only high profile people or offices should be looked at as corrupt, Mwondha said, calling corruption in local councils "stinking."
The study contains wide-ranging proposals on the legal framework for NSSF management, the role of the minister, the benefits to savers and investments.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 New Vision. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
