Kampala — AT least 12 luxurious four-wheel-drive vehicles have been purchased at a whooping sh238m each by the Parliamentary Commission.

The purchase appears to be in breach of the Public Service's standing instructions on government cars.

The new cars have an engine size of between 4,500cc and 4,700cc. However, Public Service notice No.1 of 2003 prescribes a ceiling of 3,500cc.

Only the President and the Prime Minister are allowed to use cars beyond such engine size.

The Ugandan cars exceed the capacity range for government vehicles in the rest of the region.

In Rwanda, the limit is 2,000cc for cars of ministers and other Government officials, while in Kenya the ceiling is 1,800cc.

Sunday Vision found that the purchase of the luxurious cars have not been endorsed by the procurement body, PPDA.

"The procurement didn't pass through me," said Edgar Agaba, the PPDA boss.

"Ordinarily they would have come to me for advice but they did not."

According to Toyota Uganda, the country's local distributor of the plush vehicles, the 2009 model Land Cruisers cost sh238m each, including taxes, or almost sh2.8b for all 12 cars.

The development is likely to stir fresh criticism of the House's lavish spending of taxpayers' money against the backdrop of a recent increase in salaries and allowances.

Legislators this year increased their constituency allowance from sh1.2m to sh3.2m a month, amounting to an additional sh7.6b for all MPs.This is the second increment in as many years. Last financial year, the legislators increased their fuel allowances to the tune of sh7.7b a year. The over-all budget for Parliament this financial year is sh122b. About 63% of that, or sh77b, goes directly to MPs' pockets as salary, allowances, facilitation for travel abroad and other emoluments.

The number of MPs, too, keeps increasing. With 332 MPs, the current Eighth Parliament has almost 20% more MPs than the previous one, which had 276 members. With the creation of new districts, the number is likely to go up in the next Parliament.

Asked for a reaction, state minister for finance Jachan Omach said he was not aware of the purchases.

"That is news to me. I am not aware of the new purchases. I only know of the car of the Leader of the Opposition that is supposed to be replaced after the accident he was involved in," he told Sunday Vision.

Parliament, he added, is run by the Parliamentary Commission which has its own tendering system, as opposed to purchase of vehicles through the central tender board.

Some of the beneficiaries of the new vehicles include the Speaker, the deputy Speaker and 10 directors.

Already, several Cabinet ministers, as well as the President, the Vice-President and army generals Aronda Nyakairima and Elly Tumwine have acquired the expensive 2009 model.

According to sources, a total of 20 of the sh238m Landcruisers have been bought for the country's top officials, at a total cost of sh4.7b.

The Government each year spends close to sh100b on fuel and vehicle maintenance, according to the Auditor General's office.