The Leader of the Opposition in Parliament (LoP), Joel Ssenyonyi, has presented a signed declaration by 72 Members of Parliament distancing themselves from the alleged Shs100 million cash handout reportedly given to lawmakers in secret.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday morning, Ssenyonyi paraded the list of signatories before journalists, describing it as a public pledge of integrity. He emphasized that the signatures should be treated as a form of oath, declaring the MPs’ innocence in the controversial disbursement.
“This list is not just symbolic, it’s a public commitment. And if anyone has credible doubts about any name on this declaration, bring it forward for scrutiny,” Ssenyonyi said.
He also criticized the logic behind the distribution of the cash, revealing that some NRM MPs he personally engaged with claimed the money was given to them to monitor government programmes. Ssenyonyi challenged this rationale, questioning why individual MPs would receive an amount equivalent to what is allocated to entire parishes under the Parish Development Model (PDM).
“If a whole parish receives Shs100 million under PDM, why then would one MP get the same amount for so-called monitoring? The justification doesn’t add up,” he argued.
The LoP further raised alarm over the ballooning classified expenditures, noting that Shs16.8 trillion has been spent under the classified budget in the last five financial years. He broke the figure down to approximately Shs3.3 trillion every financial year, an amount he says must be justified and aligned with Uganda’s available resources.
Ssenyonyi explained that funds for UPDF operations in conflict zones such as Somalia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan still don’t fall under classified budgets. He clarified that those deployments are appropriated in Parliament through regular processes and are not part of the classified expenditure line.
“Even warzone deployments have their budgets debated and passed in Parliament. So, what’s the basis for hiding Shs3.3 trillion under ‘classified’ if it’s not about dodging accountability?” he questioned.
