National Unity Platform President Bobi Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, has insisted that the Shs500 million allocated to former Leader of the Opposition, Mathias Mpuuga, was an act of corruption and abuse of office.
In a statement issued by Bobi Wine, he stated that the meeting which passed the controversial ‘Service Award’ money was attended by Speaker Anita Among, Mpuuga, and the three NRM Commissioners of Parliament. He further stated that this occurred two months after sacking the then Commissioner Francis Zaake.
“In that meeting, these leaders awarded themselves a collective amount of Shs1.7 billion. Hon. Mpuuga was allocated 500 million shillings, while the three others were each awarded Shs400 million,” Bobi Wine said, adding that it’s against the law for a leader to take part in a discussion involving self-enrichment on his or her part.
He added, “It was not until the minutes of the Parliamentary Commission were ‘leaked’ to the public almost two years later, that we all got to know about this.”
Upon learning about the development, Bobi Wine says that he convened an urgent meeting of senior party leaders, including all Deputy Presidents, the Secretary-General and Deputy Secretary-General, the current Leader of the Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, the National Treasurer, Muwanga Kivumbi, and Betty Nambooze.
He says Mpuuga was strongly advised to step down from the Commission in the public interest, and he requested some time to consult with his family and other stakeholders.
“In the presence of these leaders, Hon. Mpuuga admitted that the leaked minutes were genuine. He admitted that it was wrong and immoral and apologized for the same. He regretted his actions and categorically stated that in hindsight, he should never have involved himself in such,” said the NUP President.
However, Bobi Wine says that he is shocked that Mpuuga is being unapologetic in a statement he issued on Friday where he also declined to step down.
“When the one day agreed upon passed and following several reminders, we decided to issue a public statement on the matter because it is indeed a public matter for which the people of Uganda expected answers. It is their money we are talking about! Before that, I personally kept in touch with him and implored him to do the moral thing, to save his image and that of the Party,” Bobi Wine said.
“Unfortunately, following our public statement, Hon. Mpuuga has now released a statement apparently moving away from his earlier position and apology. His statement does not address the real issue of the Shs500m, and instead indirectly tries to justify this extreme act of immorality and corruption,” he added.
Bobi Wine insists that the moral thing for Mpuuga to do is to apologize to the nation and step down from the Parliamentary Commission.