UGANDA'S ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT CORRUPTION BUFFET

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 KAMPALA 000005 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL KCOR KDEM UG SUBJECT: UGANDA'S ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT CORRUPTION BUFFET REF: 09 KAMPALA 00999; 08 KAMPALA 01484; 09 KAMPALA 00846 09 KAMPALA 01356 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Uganda's failure to prosecute corrupt government officials is rapidly eroding donor confidence and local support for President Museveni. New evidence of worsening government corruption appears almost daily in local media, and in broader assessments like the Millennium Challenge Corporation's (MCC) scorecard and Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index. Senior officials from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Security, Health, Education, Local Government, Trade, Public Works, Finance, Agriculture, Interior Affairs, Tourism, the Office of the Vice President, and the Office of the Prime Minister are currently embroiled in a dizzying array of on-going corruption scandals. Rampant government corruption will be a key campaign issue for the February 2011 presidential election and a potentially destabilizing factor for the government of Uganda. End Summary. -------------- Donors Call for Prosecutions -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On December 2, the European Union Ambassador urged Uganda to prosecute corrupt officials "to avoid impunity and also avoid a situation where some people are immune to prosecution." On December 10, the British High Commissioner said the U.K. wants "to see charges brought against the culprits who have failed to account for government funds." During a December 15 wrap up of the MCC's two-year $10.4 million anti-corruption threshold program, the U.S. Mission also encouraged Uganda to investigate and prosecute government officials and members of the private sector involved in corruption. -------------- -------------- Uganda's Deteriorating Anti-Corruption Scorecard -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) President Museveni frequently alludes to impending arrests of corrupt government officials, warning that "traps" he has placed to ensnare the corrupt will soon snap shut. In 2009, however, Uganda did relatively little to investigate or prosecute corruption. The anti-corruption court convicted seven officials for corruption during the year, including four individuals for stealing from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. All seven individuals are low or mid level officials, and all are out on bail pending appeal. Uganda's International Donors' Accountability Assessment for 2009 concludes that "despite the exponential growth in cases reported...there continues to be lack of decisive political action to fight corruption." ¶4. (SBU) In 2009, Uganda failed the MCC's control of corruption indicator for the first time since FY05, and dropped from 126 to 130 on Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). Uganda's MCC anti-corruption threshold program was designed to strengthen the capacity of Uganda's anti-corruption institutions, and support provided to the Auditor General, the IGG, the Department of Public Prosecutions (DPP),the Criminal Investigations Division, the Public Procurement and Disposal Agency (PPDA),and the Anti-Corruption Court could serve as the basis for continued assistance through other programs. However, lack of high level Ugandan government support - and Uganda's failure to disburse half of the $2.2 million in promised counterpart funding - ultimately prevented the MCC program from realizing its full potential (ref. A). ¶5. (SBU) Inspector General of Government (IGG) Raphael Baku said Transparency's numbers are consistent with the IGG's own 2008 KAMPALA 00000005 002 OF 004 National Integrity Survey, which revealed rampant corruption within the police, local government, the judiciary, and the health sector among others. The Director of the Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda (ACCU),Jasper Tumuhimbise, described the CPI score as a "reflection of the truth" and predicted that Uganda's 2010 ranking will be even lower. Relentless anti-corruption hearings by Uganda's Parliamentary Accountability Committee (PAC) provide some hope for anti-corruption efforts in 2010. Traditionally chaired by a member of the opposition, the PAC continues to investigate corruption scandals, frequently compelling Ministers and Permanent Secretaries to testify publicly. The PAC cannot, however, refer cases for prosecution and the DPP regularly declines to investigate corruption exposed by PAC inquiries. -------------- -- Auld Lang Syne: The Year in Corruption -------------- -- ¶6. (SBU) The Ugandan government is mired in a dizzying array of corruption scandals. IGG Baku told local media in December that "all government arms have been found to be corrupt" including the Office of the IGG itself. The following provides a sample of Uganda's current corruption scandals: - The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM): In 2008, the Auditor General revealed approximately $27 million in unexplained expenditures related to CHOGM, which was held in November 2007. Recent CHOGM investigations led by the PAC have implicated 12 government ministries and several Cabinet Ministers - including Foreign Minister Sam Kutesa, Public Works Minister John Nasasira, Tourism Minister Serapio Rukundo, and Vice President Gilbert Bukenya - for rigging vehicle purchasing contracts, paying local construction firms for non-existent infrastructure projects, and funneling money to hotels still under construction and never used for CHOGM activities. - National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS): Launched in 2002, NAADS was intended to provide farmers with increased access to information and agricultural technology. A 2009 Auditor General audit could not account for $40 million advanced to local districts from 2006 to 2008. Opposition parties allege that NAADS funds are being diverted to support President Museveni's 2011 re-election campaign. In October, more than 200 local NAADS coordinators testified before the PAC but provided no additional information on the missing funds. The Ministry of Agriculture has launched a National Task Force to investigate the scandal. - National Social Security Fund (NSSF): In 2004, the NSSF lost $4 million in a land deal involving the former Minister of Gender, the NSSF's former Managing Director, and the former Chairman of the NSSF board. The government subsequently transferred oversight for the NSSF to the Ministry of Finance. In 2008 the NSSF was embroiled in a second $5-7 million land sale scandal, this time involving Security Minister and National Resistance Movement (NRM) Secretary General Amama Mbabazi, former Finance Minister Ezra Suruma, and a local businessman (ref. B). An August 2009 audit documented losses of $550,000 from premature sales of government bonds, and revealed that NSSF granted a $1 million low interest loan to a company partially owned by the NSSF's Managing Director - on leave since the 2008 land scandal - and another senior NSSF official. The audit also revealed that the NSSF's Managing Director spent $8,721 in NSSF funds at casinos in Las Vegas and owes NSSF $122,000. - National Forestry Authority (NFA): In October, police uncovered $450,000 in cash under the NFA Director's bed. The Minister of Water and Environment subsequently placed the NFA Director on three months leave. The Auditor General, IGG, and the Police Criminal Investigations Division (CID) are now investigating suspected illegal activities of several senior NFA officials. In what was perhaps a related event on December 11, vandals with knowledge of KAMPALA 00000005 003 OF 004 NFA's security and computer systems let themselves into NFA headquarters and destroyed approximately $2 million in computer equipment and memory cards. - Health Sector: Uganda's health sector is home to multiple corruption scandals. Investigations into the $1.5 million 2006 Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) scandal remain ongoing. Uganda has yet to act on commitments to recover $780,000 in misused Global Fund money, and $2.3 million in Global Fund money remains missing. In July, vandals with knowledge of the DPP's security and computer systems let themselves into DPP headquarters to steal Global Fund investigative materials and DPP computer equipment (ref. C). In August, a forensic audit of a portion of Uganda AIDS Commission (UAC) programming could not account for $200,000 in donor funds. In October, President Museveni fired the Health Ministry's Permanent Secretary, allegedly for corruption. However, the international donors' 2009 Accountability Sector Review describes the Permanent Secretary's removal as "surrounded with suspicion of ulterior motives," and many believe the Permanent Secretary was fired for fighting corruption rather than spreading it. The IGG investigated the Health Ministry's Principle Accounting Officer for submitting a false declaration of wealth, and concluded that the Accountant's wealth is not commensurate with his income. In November, local media reported the discovery of more than 100 fully stocked and staffed health centers on the Ministry's books, yet none of them existed at all. The Minister of Health recently made a surprise visit to the Embassy to appeal for more funds, and said corruption is the Ministry's biggest problem. - Ministry of Education: In 2009, President Museveni directed a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to examine misuse of government funds allocated to the Universal Primary Education and Secondary Education programs following reports that education officials were using "ghost pupils" to defraud the government. In June, a "Rapid Headcount Exercise" by the Ministry revealed that approximately one quarter of students listed on school registers are likely non-existent. The Judicial Inquiry is ongoing. In December, local media reported that the Education Ministry's Permanent Secretary has stacked the Ministry with as many as 30 family members and close relatives. - Uganda National Roads Authority: The Ministry of Works created the Uganda National Roads Authority in July 2008. After just more than one year in existence, the Authority has suspended 70 employees working on five different bridges across the country for bribery and extortion. An inquiry by the Ministry of Works is ongoing. - Uganda Revenue Authority (URA): Transparency International's East African Bribery Index for 2009 listed the URA as the most corrupt tax authority in the three east African nations - Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda - sampled. - Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) - Trade Minister, Gen. Kahinda Otafiire, dissolved the UNBS in December, accusing the UNBS of extravagant spending and failing to respect his authority. Otafiire and the UNBS board are at odds over a contract for the pre-inspection of imported vehicles and other goods. - Water Sector: A 2009 report commissioned by the Ministry of Water and Environment concluded that $25.5 million was lost to corruption between 2002 and 2009 in the water sector. The report cited contracting irregularities for water installations and bribes to bypass water meters. - Uganda Police Force: A number of mid and low-level police officials were reprimanded or fired for corruption, including at least two dozen officers and the Police Department's Accounting Officer. In August, six police officials and a principal analyst at the Ministry of Finance were charged with embezzling $1.5 million by creating 4,500 "ghost" police officers. The arrests KAMPALA 00000005 004 OF 004 followed an inquiry ordered by the Inspector General of Police in November 2008. All the seven individuals were subsequently released on bail. The most frequent accusations of corruption toward the police stem from traffic shakedowns, requests for money to finance investigations, and requests for fuel. Contributing factors to petty corruption among police are low and infrequently paid salaries, poor living conditions, and poor education and health services. - Oil Sector: On January 3, local press reports highlighted growing concerns about potential corruption in Uganda's nascent oil industry (ref. D). -------------- -------------- Comment: Transparency Without Accountability -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) The local chairman of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) describes Uganda's anti-corruption strategy as "transparency without accountability." Government corruption is a daily theme in Uganda media, and the most corrupt government officials and institutions are well known to the general public. Shining very public and bright lights on these officials' misdeeds, however, seems to have little impact as a deterrent or accountability measure. Many Ugandans believe President Museveni will never hold top NRM officials - like Security Minister Amama Mbabazi, Foreign Minister Sam Kutesa, and Trade Minister Kahinda Otafiire - accountable for corruption, and Uganda's continued failure to seriously investigate and prosecute allegations of corruption involving senior government officials seemingly supports such conclusions. ¶8. (SBU) All seven of the officials convicted of corruption by the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court during the year are free on bail pending appeal. Anti-Corruption Court officials told the Mission that another three corruption cases are in progress, and that the court granted 190 applications for bail during the year for individuals arrested on suspicion of corruption but not charged. Such paltry prosecution rates are not surprising given that the anti-corruption court has only 3 judges, 5 magistrates, and extremely limited resources. The court is also dependent on the DPP and the IGG to forward corruption cases for prosecution. The DPP and IGG's continued hesitancy to tackle serious corruption cases - presumably for political reasons - is a major impediment for anti-corruption efforts. If the DPP and IGG continue to shy away from prosecuting tough cases in 2010, local government services, public support for President Museveni, foreign investment, and donor confidence will continue to suffer. Uganda's image as a model for good governance is essentially a thing of the past. LANIER