MPs move to block Bagyenda’s reappointment to FIA board

By our reporter

A section of MPs on Thursday embarked on a move to block the reappointment of Justine Bagyenda on the board of Financial Intelligence Authority (FIA).

On 7 May, 2018, Finance Minister Matia Kasaija wrote a letter to the Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga renewing the contract of the former Bank of Uganda Director in charge of supervision and four others to continue governing the FIA board.

Bagyenda’s controversial re-appointed sparked anger among MPs who wondered how a person under probe by FIA over money laundering be reappointed on the same authority’s board.

The legislators said the appointments committee should put on hold approving Bagyenda until investigations against her by the IGG and FIA are concluded.

And yesterday MPs led by Manjiya County’s John Nambeshe and Kasambya County’s Louis Mbwatekamwa Gaffa  have vowed to exert pressure on Parliament’s Appointments Committee to see Bagyenda’s reappointment blocked.

“We are against Mrs. Bagyend’s reappointment to this position on grounds that she was sent into early retirement by Bank of Uganda Governor Tumusiime Mutebile recently and she used her position to amass wealth as her leaked bank accounts indicate she has close to shs20 billion,” said Nambeshe.

“In section 25(4) of the Anti-money laundering Act , you cannot reappoint a person who is seen to have moral turpitude like Mrs. Bagyenda having amassed wealth primitively,” he added.

Mbwantekamwa questioned how Bagyenda, a supervisor of commercial banks, became a billionaire in such as short a time.

“We are here to appeal to members of the appointments committee that we are not going to accept this; Ugandans are watching and the population is becoming poorer, every other day,” said Mbwatekamwa.

Last week, Kasaija defended himself that he was unaware about Bagyenda’s investigations by the time he made the re-appointment.

“When I re-appointed her, the issues of money laundering and others were not yet in the press. There’s no way I could have re-appointed her with question marks surrounding her integrity,” Kasaija told Daily Monitor.

But when it was put to him that by 7 May, it was public knowledge that Bagyenda was under probe, Kasaija who looked confused asked for sometime to crosscheck for facts.