In a lengthy cross-examination at the High Court in  Kampala on Friday, the Chairperson of the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC), Mariam Wangadya, testified against three Members of Parliament who are being prosecuted for demanding a 20% share of the UHRC budget before they could approve it.

The lawmakers, who include Yusuf Mutembuli, Cissy Namujju, and Paul Akamba, were arrested on orders of President Yoweri Museveni over the matter.

For the first time, Wangadya publicly narrated how the entire story unfolded. 

She said she knew Mutembuli as the vice chairperson of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, before which she had appeared on the invitation of the Committee to present a policy statement on the UHRC.

In her presentation to the Committee, Wangadya highlighted financial challenges faced by the Commission, indicating that several activities of the Commission were unfunded and this affected it’s performance. 

“This Commission requested from the government  58 billion shillings, but what had been released was little over 19 billion, which fell far short of what we needed to execute our mandate. The committee listened to our cries, but nothing changed,” Wangadya narrated.

Asked who attended the committee meeting at Parliament, Wangadya said it was the committee chairperson, Robinah Rwakojo, vice chairperson, Yusuf Mutembuli, and other members she did not remember.

She narrated that one MP (she doesn’t recall) told her that he would lead her to his colleague, who in turn would help support the UHRC and have its 58 billion shillings budget approved.

The said MP led Wangadya to Fox Odoi, the MP for West Budama North East constituency. Odoi then took Wangadya to Mutembuli in his office.

On her way to Mutembuli’s office, Wangadya was accompanied by a colleague from UHRC who was disallowed in the meeting she had with Mutembuli.

“I entered and had a chat with Hon. Mutembuli. At that point, Odoi moved out of office. The chat was about our budget and how to enhance it. Hon. Mutembuli said he had a solution to our financial problem,” Wangadya narrated before Court.

She wanted to know what the solution was.

“He (Mutembuli) said that usually, MDAs (Ministries, Departments, and Agencies) offer a cut of 5% of their budget to Members of Parliament before it is approved as it is. And we should do the same. He later asked for the telephone number of the [UHRC] accounting officer, which I gave to him.”

Wangadya told Mutembuli it was hard for her to surrender the 5% of the UHRC budget.

“He (Mutembuli) said my accounting officer could perhaps understand better. To the best of my knowledge, he called her.”

The UHRC accounting officer, Ejang Margaret, revealed to Wangadya that Mutembuli asked her to relieve 5% of the UHRC budget or not get the 58 billion shillings budget approved.

“My accounting officer told me she would rather leave the job than do that,” Wangadya told court.

“Indeed, our budget remained at a miserable 19 billion. We didn’t get the increment we had requested for, but at some point, Hon. Mutembuli called me and said he would take me to a colleague on the committee who would listen to me and help us.”

One Saturday, Mutembuli called Wangadya and asked to meet him at Parliament. He took her to the office of the vice chairperson of the budget committee and Elgon County lawmaker, Ignatius Mudimi Wamakuyu.

“I presented my issues of our financial constraints, which had incapacitated the execution of our mandate.”

The vice chairperson of the budget committee told Wangadya to “know what we do here.”

“He got a plain sheet of paper and wrote on it 5% and showed it to me,” Wangadya told Court.

At that point, Wangadya said she was terrified knowing that the UHRC budget would not be approved.

“So, I left believing that we were destined to never have it.”

She briefed the UHRC accounting officer about what had happened.

“It became too much for the Commission because donors had halted funding to the Commission.”

The Commission had started to close down some of its offices, e.g., in Bundibugyo, and was going ahead to close more because they could not sustain them.

At that point, Wangadya resolved to meet President Museveni to resign. This was April 2024 at State House Entebbe.

“I wanted to resign because I felt I had been put in an office that the government was not interested in funding. And I was being seen as a failure.”

In the meeting with Museveni, she informed the president about the financial situation at UHRC. 

“I asked for his personal intervention. In whichever way, he deemed fit to sustain the UHRC by funding the Commission.”

Museveni was shocked. and asked if UHRC doesn’t prepare budgets like other institutions do and present them before Parliament for approval.

She informed Museveni about the demands from MPs before approving the budget, specifically the 5% share.

“I told him I was quitting the job.”

The president listened attentively as she narrated the story.

“He (Museveni) told me, I will catch them. He authorized the laying of a trap if they (MPs) ever told me again. He said he would work with the police to get evidence so that he takes action. After I left State House, he called me and said he was disgusted and would arrest any MP involved. He told me not to quit my job.”

On May 13, 2024, Wangadya received a call from Mutembuli to meet him and some of his colleagues at Hotel Africana. It was in the afternoon.

Wangadya then called Maj. Betty Agaba, the ADC, to President Museveni because the president had suggested laying a trap to get evidence.

Agaba informed Wangadya that she had also been instructed by Museveni to lay a trap to catch them.

Agaba asked Wangadya to wait for her before heading to Hotel Africana to meet with Mutembuli and his colleagues.

“She (Maj Agaba) came with a recording device. She told me she had instructions from the president to record the proceedings of that meeting. She taught me how to activate it. At that point, I proceeded to Hotel Africana.”

“I found Hon. Mutembuli with another Member of Parliament whose names I didn’t know but introduced himself as Hon Akamba, the MP for Busike County. They had a female colleague who got tired of waiting for me and left. They called her back. Hon. Mutembuli said the national budget was to be approved within two days. Then was the time for them to defend the budget for UHRC. He said it was important that the other lady colleague arrives and we sit together. It was getting late, and I requested that we hold the discussion with the three of us, but Hon. Mutembuli said it was crucial for her to be present for things to move. She later arrived. Hon. Mutembuli asked me if I knew her. I had seen her on TV. He said we call her Cissy. I completed the name that this is Hon. Cissy Namujju of Lwengo. He said they would work together, the three of them. They would seek compliance from their colleague MPs, and that process needed money. Hon. Namujju inquired how much of our budget I was willing to surrender. I said you had mentioned 5% of our budget, and he said here is a situation where you have conceded absolutely nothing. If I were in your position, I would consent even 20%,” Wangadya told Court.

Wangadya was then asked to show them the UHRC budget. She called her personal assistant, who sent her the supplementary budget on WhatsApp.

“Namujju said, after we work for you and get this money and you don’t give us our share, “ntabuka,” translated as I will be mad.”

The three agreed that Wangadya reaches a consensus with the UHRC accounting officer to consent to 20% and have the budget approved.

They said they were about to go for campaigns and therefore needed money.

The three lawmakers also told Wangadya that the money (20% budget share) would be shared with budget committee members and officials from the Ministry of Finance.

She was given one day, May 14, 2024, to have agreed with the UHRC accounting officer and surrender 20%. 

Wangadya was directed to call Namujju strictly on WhatsApp after reaching consensus with the UHRC accounting officer.

“Namujju said she is powerful and she can reach everywhere. She can even reach Museveni.”

Namujju left the meeting, and Wangadya stayed with Mutembuli and Akamba.

The meeting would later come to an end, and they parted ways.

When Wangadya got home, she called Maj Agaba to surrender the recording device.

She handed the device over to a police officer from CID at Kibuli.

A few days later, Wangadya got a call from Museveni saying he was disgusted up on listening to the recording and would seek legal advice from the DPP if any offenses had been committed.

Wangadya was then asked to record a statement at CID at Kibuli.

This would result in the arrest of the three MPs who are now being prosecuted for corruption.

According to the Inspector General of Government (IGG), Uganda loses over 10 trillion shillings in corruption.

by URN