GRILLED: IGG Investigators Quiz Gender Minister Amongi For 8 Hours

By Our Reporter

KAMPALA, Uganda [SHIFTMEDIA] “What Goes Around, Turns Around.” We can exclusively reveal that the woes for embattled Gender and Labour Minister Hon Betty Amongi are far from over. Our sources reveal that the Oyam South Legislator whom Parliament wants “Guillotined” over the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) saga was yesterday grilled for over eight (8) hours by the Inspectorate of Government (IGG).

Though she was summoned by the IGG Hon Beti Olive Namisango Kamya, our sources said she requested to be “roasted” from her office. Not deterred, a team of 4 investigating officers were dispatched by the IGG to take Among through the “rough terrain” of interrogation.

The team of investigators arrived at Amongi’s office shortly after 9am and were seen leaving the officers way close to 5pm. Simple mathematics can show you that the grilling lasted 8 hours.

Issues Arising

A source attached to the IGG investigative Department who declined to be named said the Gender Minister was grilled on a number of issues including influence peddling in the Nakigalala land purchase. Apparently Amongi notes that she blocked the purchase of the land by NSSF due to variance in costs. NSSF had requested for UGX 400 billion to purchase this said land, but Amongi notes that the Government Valuer had put the cost of the land at just UGX 246.1 billion. The land measuring some 400 hectares, located along the Entebbe Express High way is owned the family of Mulijibhai Madhvani.

The minister says she got wind of the aledged purchase of the land by NSSF when she was presented with the budget to offset release of the shs400 billion.

However inside sources at NSSF indicate that the Minister was lying about the whole purchase.

NSSF clarifies

The NSSF Chief Investments Officer Gerald Kasato said what the Minister was claiming regarding inflation of the Nakigalala land was not correct. He noted that the whole sum of shs400 billion was planned to buy two pieces of land, the one at Nakigalala, and another 40-acre piece of land belonging to the Uganda Police Force in Naguru under a mutual collaboration between the workers Fund and Police. Former NSSF Managing Director Richard Byarugaba while appearing before the parliamentary committee probing the NSSF saga also indicated that the shs400b was planned to buy two pieces of land, and not one as alleged by Amongi.

The team of investigators from the IGGs office wanted to know why the Minister was peddling lies, according to our sources.

 

UGx 6B Request

Hon Amongi according to our sources also had a very “rough” time explaining why she had requested for a whooping UGX 6 billion from the workers Fund to supervise activities of the National Social Security Fund. The Minister for Finance, Planning and Economic Development Hon Matia Kasaijja earlier lashed out at Amongi saying the act was irregular. Amongi wrote to the NSSF Board Chair Peter Kimbowa requesting for shs6b to facilitate activities to grow the funds savers numbers.

Kasaija noted that it was irregular for the Ministry (Gender and Labor)  supervising the funds to request for money from it because the same ministry is provided with a budget of its own from the treasury. The investigators demanded to know from Amongi if it was true, she declined to renew the contract of former NSSF MD Richard Byarugaba because he had refused to release the shs6b she requested from NSSF.

Amongi however defended her decision noting that the law mandates her under section 29 of the NSSF Act to amend the NSSF budget.

Foreign Trip Queried

The IGG team of investigators also quizzed Betty Amongi on reports that she had used NSSF monies to fly to New York along with Female Workers MP Agnes Kunihira.

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