Kadaga asks IGG to probe BCU management over corruption

BY YAHUDU KITUNZI.

 The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, has asked the Inspector General of Government to investigate allegations of corruption against the leadership of Bugisu Cooperative Union led by Nathan Nandala Mafabi.

Mr Mafabi, who also doubles as the Member of Parliament for Budadiri West in Sironko district and Secretary general for Forum for Democratic Change is now serving his fourth term as BCU chairperson after he was last year,voted unopposed by the delegates.

Mrs Kadaga’s request follows a complaint by the BCU petitioners to parliament on December 4, last year, in which they accused Nandala and his leadership of, among other things, embezzlement of funds including Shs 1.129 billion, which government allegedly compensated the Union in 2015.

The director for communication and public Affairs in parliament, Mr Chris Obore when contacted for comment, said he was not aware of the developments.

However, Mr John Wamulugwa, the lead petitioner said BCU leadership and the ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives should be investigated for the mismanagement of Union from 2008 to date.

Mr Wamulugwa, further claims that Mr Nandala and his management are not doing any logical business in the Union.

But Mr Nandala in his letter dated Feb 16, 2019,responded to the Speaker’s letter, saying instead that the petitioners were behind the mismanagement of Union from 1995-2008 up to halt. Mr Nandala also said the petitioners are working against the development of Union.

It alleged that petitioners have written more than 563 petitions against the BCU leadership.

The Union formed in 1954 is one of Uganda’s few farmer-owned entities that have survived since the closure of the Uganda Co-operative bank in 1999.

In 2010, the government suspended the BCU board led by Mr Nandala on allegations that his board had falsified the books of accounts.

The government then appointed a committee to investigate BCU operations between 2003 and 2010 but the committee failed to release the report.

This consequently prompted the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives to order another forensic audit in 2013 to look at accounts from 1996 to 2010.

The report exonerated Mr Nandala of causing any financial loss to the union and he was in 2014 voted back as chairperson by the delegates.

Written by David Kugonza