Former Leaders of the Opposition (LoP) in Parliament, Ogenga Latigo, Betty Aol Ochan, and Winnie Kiiza have weighed in on the controversial allocation of Shs500 million to Mathias Mpuuga as a ‘Service Award’ following the end of his two-and-a-half-year tenure as LoP.
Ogenga Latigo has condemned Mpuuga for accepting the money, which he said they never received. He revealed that he was denied the chance to take the laptop he was using while occupying the office of LoP.
“I wanted to take the laptop I was using since it had a lot of my work. But the parliament administration refused,” he said.
Betty Aol Ochan has advised Mpuuga to step down from his current position as a parliamentary commissioner, saying the money seems ‘dirty’ as it has never been given to anyone before.
“If I were him, I would step aside if it’s true because it is public knowledge. Probably he has a reason, which he should come out and clarify,” Ochan said.
Winnie Kiiza, who only received an accolade, a calendar, a diary, and a bag while leaving the LoP office, defends the “service award”; however, she says the award should be institutionalized and not target individuals.
“If parliament is coming up with an innovation of awarding people for good service, let it be institutionalized,” she said.
Last week, the National Unity Platform (NUP) asked Mpuuga to step down from his current position (parliamentary commissioner), accusing him of corruption and abuse of office after he was given the Shs500 million.
In response, Mpuuga declined to step down, explaining that the said money was granted to him by the Parliamentary Commission as gratuity and thus he cannot be accused of any crime.