By Mulengera Reporters
The Leader of the Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, led his Shadow Cabinet in criticizing the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) for mishandling the results of the 2024 national census. Ssenyonyi questioned why the public wasn’t notified about the corrections made to the flawed data initially released by UBOS. He recalled the public’s outcry after discrepancies were identified in the data.
Ssenyonyi voiced his concerns during an oversight visit by the Shadow Cabinet to Statistics House. He urged UBOS to prioritize public sensitization regarding the corrections made to the census data.
“You promised us that the final report would be released in December 2024 after issues were identified in the initial report,” Ssenyonyi said. “The first report was met with public backlash due to errors. I expected that when the corrected report was released, it would be launched properly to address the negative perceptions that had already formed about UBOS.”
He continued, “It’s not enough to simply upload the corrected report quietly to your website. I thought there would be a grander presentation to highlight the corrections, especially since the initial report was met with so much criticism. Many people still aren’t aware that a final, corrected report has been released. The corrections should have been highlighted louder than the original errors.”
James Muwonge, UBOS Director of Methodology and Statistical Coordination Services, acknowledged the errors in the data but emphasized that making the corrections public was part of UBOS’s commitment to the principles of official statistics.
“It’s true that there were errors, but when such errors are identified, the principle is to acknowledge them and make the corrections public. That’s what we did,” Muwonge explained.
He also welcomed Ssenyonyi’s suggestion for increased public awareness, adding, “We’re following our roadmap, and the report was uploaded by December 31, as planned. The next stage is the rollout, and we appreciate your guidance on this matter.”
Regarding discrepancies in the data on Persons with Disabilities (PWDs), Muwonge explained that the differences stemmed from UBOS’s definition of PWDs, which differed from that used by activists in these groups.
“It wasn’t an error in our report; it was a matter of differing definitions and standards,” Muwonge clarified.
Ssenyonyi also questioned the errors in the data, particularly the misreporting of ethnic and tribal groups, which led to public outcry. He pointed out that UBOS had acknowledged these mistakes but failed to reach out to the affected communities.
In response, Muwonge admitted that some enumerators had not been paid due to logistical issues, though he noted that nearly 99% of the enumerators had been compensated. He emphasized that the reasons for non-payment were legitimate and required time to resolve.
Opposition Protests UBOS Snub
Ssenyonyi also expressed disappointment that UBOS’s Executive Director, Chris Mukiza, and Deputy Executive Director, Vincent Ssenono, were absent from the meeting. He suggested that their absence sent a message that UBOS does not take Parliament seriously.
“I was expecting the Executive Director and the Deputy Executive Director to be here. Their absence might suggest that you don’t take us seriously. These things may seem petty, but when we want to engage with entities, it’s because we consider ourselves partners,” Ssenyonyi remarked. “When we seek to engage, it’s not because we are idle; we are doing our job of holding government to account.”
Ssenyonyi further revealed that UBOS had attempted to obstruct his oversight efforts. He noted that Sharon Apio, the UBOS liaison staff assigned to communicate with his team, had blocked the phone numbers of his staff, forcing them to communicate by email. He vowed not to be deterred by these actions.
“UBOS was given UGX 328 billion in taxpayer money for the census, and we need to take our oversight role seriously. If we are serious, we expect you to be serious too,” Ssenyonyi added.
Muwonge defended the decision to proceed with the meeting despite the absence of the top UBOS officials, stating that it was better to engage rather than postpone the meeting further, which would have been interpreted negatively.
“We’re not undermining you. We recognize your role in holding us accountable. The Executive Director had hoped to attend, but when he couldn’t, it seemed better to hold the meeting than to postpone it again,” Muwonge explained.
Calls for Inquiry
Okin Ojara, MP for Chwa West, called for a parliamentary inquiry into UBOS’s handling of the national census, arguing that the errors made by UBOS were significant and undermined public trust in the data.
“We need a motion in Parliament to investigate this. The errors were not simple, and they have damaged UBOS’s credibility. We need to understand what went wrong and whether there was political interference in the process,” Ojara stated.
Christine Nakimwelo, MP for Kiboga DWR, questioned why UBOS had lumped 34 tribes into the vague “others” category instead of providing a breakdown for each tribe. She said, “The tribes have approached me, asking how 34 tribes can be grouped under ‘others.’ We need to provide detailed data for each tribe.”-Parliament Watch. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
