By Wafula Malik
President M7 has lost his cool and once again rebuked Dorris Akol for leading “a useless crowd of URA officials” who specialize in “frustrating” investors and thereby slowing down Uganda’s economic development. This is in reference to the Shs2.2trn (or USD620m) Osukuru Industrial Project/complex in Tororo for the manufacture of fertilizers & steel processing. M7 is excited about the 2,000 youth jobs the Chinese company Dongsong Energy Group Ltd is creating under the Osukur Complex. The Chinese recently imported equipment which URA refused to clear into the country demanding that customs duties worth Shs4.5bn be paid first. According to Kololo-based ABMAK lawyers who represent the Chinese, URA worker Geoffrey Olaka supervised by Dickens Kateshumbwa, who is widely believed to be the next Commissioner General replacing Akol, are the ones who have been handling the matter. ABMAK argues it was improper for duo to block equipment shipping into the country because the Shs4.5bn they are claiming doesn’t arise because the 2014 MoU the company signed with GoU exonerates them from such taxation. GoU was also obliged to alter the EAC Customs Management Act to ensure all inputs Dongsong imports for mineral processing purposes is tax-free. In a December 2016 letter, M7 directed finance Minister Matia Kasaija to expeditiously secure this amendment in conjunction with other EAC partner states. This never happened, hence making operations even more complicated for Dongsong whose China-based President Lee Weidong recently flew to Uganda to protest to M7. In the meeting, Weidong questioned Uganda’s seriousness & demanded action against URA.
The company officials spent the whole of last month pleading to URA’s Geoffrey Olaka to clear them in vain. Four days after meeting Weidong, M7 wrote a furious letter dated 14th August unilaterally knifing hapless Olaka from URA employment. M7, who is understood not to be interested in Akol anymore, has previously written letters denouncing her leadership of the tax body including tolerating tax evasion which he says annually costs govt Shs400bn in the steel sub sector alone. Museveni says Olaka is so disgraceful & doesn’t qualify to work at URA. He furiously wonders how Commissioner Customs the powerful Dickens Kateshumbwa came to allow or delegate such a saboteur to act on his behalf in this matter relating to such a very serious investor. The clearly very angry President also describes the team at URA as ignorant, malicious and corrupt. That they like to endlessly toss around his good investors ostensibly to create room for extortion. He concludes by saying that many of the guys holding office today at Nakawa “shouldn’t belong to the URA.” This isn’t the first time Dongsong the same Chinese company is causing problems for Ugandan officials. Mid last year, two influential finance ministry officials were fired by the President and subsequently put on criminal trial for soliciting hundreds of millions in bribes to process Dongsong’s tax incentives request for implementation by URA. What public officials have failed to understand is that Dongsong was directly referred to the President by the Chinese President during the BRICS summit in South Africa in 2014. This means they have many channels through which they can reach President M7 in a very short time. Museveni became even more interested in helping Dongsong more pro-actively after learning of the painful experiences the investor suffered at the hands of FDC strongman Geoffrey Ekanya who was then a very powerful legislator for Tororo County where the Osukur rock & hill is located. For comments, reach us on 0703164755.
