By George Murumba

29^th Oct 2012:

A brief but representative sample of views expressed by Ugandans over the theft of $5.2million worth of Irish Aid from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) indicate that an overwhelming majority of Ugandans want Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi to resign or be sacked.

Using social media sites and interactive platforms on newspaper websites as avenues to vent their anger, Ugandans generally feel that as the head of the ministry, Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi should take political responsibility and resign.

If he refuses to resign, Ugandans want President Museveni sack Mbabazi immediately.  Some have pointed to the fact that over the many years of Amama Mbabazi’s long service in Museveni’s government, he has been accused and or linked to several corruption scandals – all of which he has vehemently denied.

All Mbabazi’s denials do not seem to have calmed Ugandans who are angry with the impunity and corruption epidemic that is consuming the very soul of the country.  Below is a random selection of some of the views (names withheld) Ugandans expressed over the theft of millions of dollars of donor funds from the Prime Minister’s office.

“…Wherever Amama is, there’s a trail of corruption.  Of course, the rule of corruption is that the big fish uses conduits to siphon government money as was the case in Temangalo.  The Arab investors also accuse Amama of conning of them billions (case in court). I now wonder why donor funds can be safe under Amama’s office.” said one Ugandan.

Another one said:  “…The least we expect Amama Mbabazi to do is to take political responsibility. He must resign or be fired” – a view shared by another irked Ugandan who said:  “…I think apologies cannot work here.  Hon. Mbabazi just failed to supervise his ministry and he should resign – “kyaba too much”.

One rather cynical and incredulous Ugandan said:  “…A lot has been said, but the final word will be from the Headmaster, HE the president of Uganda.  And I can guess what he will say:  Let’s set up a committee to investigate the misuse and this will be headed by Kahinda Otafire – ha ha ha ha!”

In an interview with an Irish radio station, Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi apologised to the Irish government but denied having benefited personally from the theft of the $5million – a comment which prompted one Ugandan to ask:

“…How can the Prime Minister of the Republic of Uganda only apologise to Dublin/Ireland and not to Ugandans. In a normal situation, he (PM) should have resigned already because he failed to supervise his officials.”

An even more suspicious Ugandan asked:  “…Amama?  Not to know what was going on in his office?  What kind of “boss” is he?  Only unborn babies can believe him…let him be honest and tell the world the truth.”

Finally, another Ugandan says:  “…At least at this point Amama should step down.  Whether one knows or not, it’s his office and it is his responsibility.  What type of country are we living in?  Amama, apology accepted but step down.” END:  Login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories mid-week for our updates

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