By Our Reporters
KCCA Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago has diagnosed his ED Jeniffer Musisi’s biggest problem as being one person who resents and is phobic about being effectively supervised. Speaking on Dr. Sam Kazibwe’s 88.8 CBS FM political program, on which he features regularly, Lukwago said: “Jeniffer Musisi Semakula’s problem isn’t knew. It’s well known. Since her days at URA she resents being supervised by a strong oversight authority. She was under Allen Kagina as ED URA and as required by law, URA had a board but it was always weakened by those so-called powerful ladies. They made sure the board was neutralized and lacked teeth to bite. Dr. Kazibwe you are a well-informed journalist but if I was to ask you who was the board chair or member at URA when they worked there, you would struggle to name any. This is because they overshadowed the board because they deliberately resent strong supervision and there is nothing new about the hostilities Jennifer Musisi is manifesting towards the political leadership at KCCA. It’s because we have insisted on scrutinizing her actions. How do you control over Shs500bn of the taxpayer’s money and you don’t want scrutiny by the representatives of the very people who pay those taxes?” Lukwago wondered adding that even currently at UNRA, where Musisi’s mentor Kagina is ED, the board is struggling to do its oversight work. Lukwago said because she is used to being supervised by bodies with less powers (than she wields in management) and incapable of asserting themselves, Musisi even tried to propose to the central government that the elected leaders at KCCA should be replaced with a governing board similar to what is in place at UNRA and URA. “She resents being supervised and one thing that annoyed her is when Councilors and myself questioned the Shs5bn available for Mr. Peter Kauju’s Corporate Affairs and services. We said instead of increasing the tax burden on Kampalans who are already being taxed too much by both KCCA and URA in order to find the additional Shs2bn to cater for the increase in the political leaders’ salaries, why don’t we take Shs2bn from less important items like Corporate Affairs? She took offence and said you are crossing the red line,” said Lukwago stressing that unlike the politically appointed governing bodies at URA and UNRA that can be cowed and let the Musisis/Kaginas of this world be, there is no way the political leaders at City Hall will be cowed into silence because they have the mandate of Kampalans who elected them.
MUSISI PONDERS COURT;
In a related development, Musisi maintains she hasn’t ruled out going to court to commence proceedings against Lukwago and his councilors whom he says have previously directed acts of emotional and physical violence towards her and other members of the technical wing. In response, Lukwago said on Dr. Kazibwe’s program that: “We aren’t worried about being sued. In fact that is very good because it shows she is also finally seeing sense in resolving matters through the courts of law rather than the extra-judicial way of disrespecting courts. By the way I’m in court already and when she files, she will find me there. I have a case against her defying Justice Lydia Mugambe’s ruling regarding my salary arrears [over Shs560m] and another one against Beti Kamya.” Lukwago added that Musisi would face a hard time proving her allegations because no acts of violence have ever been directed at her by any Lord councilor. “All the Lord Councilors are very decent people and besides where would they have found her to occasion that violence when she hasn’t been coming to our meetings? She hasn’t been attending. She is always delegating which is very wrong because as accounting officer you sometimes have to be there in person…Its simply not possible that the whole ED would get assaulted in Authority meetings and it isn’t reported by the reporters who are always very many in our meetings,” Lukwago said wishing Musisi luck in her planned litigation against political leaders at City Hall. For comments, call/text/whatsapp us on 0703164755!
