Uganda: "Government Got the Priorities Wrong," DP Speaks Out On Budget

By Jonah Kirabo

The Democratic Party (DP) has urged government to revise its priorities while allocating funds, and start drafting budgets that do not only focus on borrowing and spending.

While addressing the DP weekly press conference on Tuesday, party spokesperson Opio Okoler Lo Amanu said government needs to fund strategies that will increase the country's tax base.

"The government should fund strategies aimed at increasing the country's tax base from one million taxpayers so that we are able to finance at least 80% of our annual budget locally and a deliberate move to heavily invest in agriculture can easily widen our tax base," Okoler said.

The DP mouthpiece said that from what was captured in the report on the annual budget estimates, the government continues to get it wrong on its priorities.

"Agriculture which supports over 80 percent of our population was given only 2.64% of the total budget," Okoler said.

"Uganda is a party to the Maputo Declaration which enjoins countries to allocate at least 10 percent of their annual budgets to agriculture, government has disregarded this declaration made in 2003."

DP also advised that borrowing from domestic sources should be avoided as much as possible because it increases the interest on borrowed money beyond comfortable reach of the business fraternity.

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