Kampala — Muwanga queried the accountability for sh371.6m in salary arrears and lunch allowances which had no documents to confirm receipt of payment by the beneficiaries.

"Expenditures amounting to sh262.2m had no payment vouchers," Muwanga said. "The purpose and authenticity of the payments could not be established."

School desks and water tanks worth sh54.8m also had no store records to confirm their receipt and issue for use.

Muwanga, in his 2005/2006 audit report, also noted that sh305m for Universal Secondary Education was not transferred, but diverted and spent at the district headquarters."Capitation grants amounting to sh119.9m, for Government-aided secondary schools were not accounted for," he said.

Ministry concerned

In a letter dated September 25, 2008, Hope Mwesigye, the local government state minister, asked the Mukono LC5 chairman, Lukooya Mukoome, to submit the auditor general's report to the local government public accounts committee (PAC).

The report, Mwesigye says, raised issues that impacted on the Government's efforts to improve public accountability.

PAC holds meeting

In response to the attorney general's report, the district public accounts committee convened a meeting at Mukono Resort Hotel recently. The committee chairman, Patrick Luganda, grilled the principal assistant secretary in charge of accountability, Kizito Mugerwa and Vincent Mutebi, the chief accountant.

Luganda noted that a supplementary budget of sh1.8b was advanced to the district in two instalments, but there was no supplementary order for expenditure.

He noted that the two officials did not report receipt and expenditure of the monies to the district council until the attorney general queried the expenditures. "You have to tell us who erred with the monies," he said. "If you cannot, you will sink with the ship."

Mugerwa and Mutebi said the failure to account for the funds was an oversight and requested that the former chief administrative officers, Solomon Ssonko and Edward Galabuzi, (now CAO of Rakai), be summoned to account for the sh1.8b.

But the five-member committee said the duo had been given enough time to account for the funds. "This matter has to be settled by people in office," said Luganda. "The financial system in Mukono is rotten. No one took charge to ensure accountability for the monies."

The committee gave the officers a week to account for the money. "We want to give you a rope long enough to hang yourselves," Luganda said.