The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Deputy Speaker of Parliament Anita Among has said that the Minister of Finance will not fund the travel budget of Parliament in the next financial year.
Among told MPs on Wednesday and accused the Ministry of Finance of trying to stifle the operations of parliament and taking over the appropriation role.
In January, Parliament approved the proposed 43.08 trillion Shillings National Budget Framework Paper for the financial year 2022/2023. The budget indicated that Legislation, Oversight, and Representation would be allocated a total of 686 billion Shillings. It is currently not clear how much the Finance Ministry is going to cut from Parliament’s proposed budget for the next financial year.
Among said that the letter from Minister Kasaija is unfortunate and wondered whether the ministry had taken over the appropriation role of the House.
Henry Musasizi, the Minister of State for Finance-General Duties said that the budget is passed premised on revenue performance and that without the collections, the Ministry of Finance releases what is available.
Musasizi said that it was not the intention of the Ministry of Finance to stifle the work of parliament.
Musasizi’s response angered the Deputy Speaker who questioned how the oversight role of the House would be performed without funding. She tasked Musasizi, who doubles as the Rubanda East MP to outline his priority areas as a Member of Parliament.
This is not the first time that Parliament is at loggerheads with the Finance Ministry over budget cuts. In the current financial year 2021/2022, the Minister of Finance Matia Kasaija justified the budget cut on the Parliamentary Commission, saying that it was necessary to help the country meet urgent Covid-19 medical needs.
Kasaija said in October 2021, that the decision was taken by Cabinet to cut money appropriated for travel and workshops in all government entities.
“When COVID-19 invaded us, we had not budgeted for it. People were dying and the primary responsibility of any government is to preserve their lives. I would do anything, look for money for wherever to preserve life. What is the use of putting up a road, school, railway when people are dying? Who are you doing it for?” Kasaija asked.
This was after the Deputy Speaker Among then complained about the Parliamentary Commission budget cuts saying that these have crippled the work of the House committees.
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