It’s now an open secret that the fight between the Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Hon. Betty Amongi and Mr. Richard Byarugaba, the former Managing Director of the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), is a personal one.
Now the latest information on our investigation desk indicates that Job Richard Matua, the hitherto petitioner who claimed to have petitioned Minister Amongi over the mismanagement of the Fund, has been exposed as having obtained classified documents from the same minister he claims to have petitioned.
Matua was put to shame while appearing before the Parliament Select Committee investigating issues of corporate governance at the Shs17.8 trillion National Social Security Fund (NSSF), a few days ago.
Upon being questioned by the Committee Chairperson Mwine Mpaka, who is also the Member of Parliament for Mbarara City South, Mutua said that he received all documents from the Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development Amongi.
“Before we let you go, can you tell us the source of this information and documents that you have given us?” Mwine asked.
He claimed that he wrote to the Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development Among to avail him all the documents.
However, upon further questioning by the Committee Chairman and other members of the committee, he could not produce a letter he wrote asking for the documents.
As soon as the committee ordered him to produce the letters in a few hours, he claimed that he was “sick”, and could not return to the committee.
Experts are now wondering how a so-called petitioner and whistleblower could petition and whistle blow to the same minister who gave her documents including correspondences between the ministry, the NSSF Board Chairman, and the NSSF officials.
Sources said that President Yoweri Museveni was persuaded to allow an investigation based on information from the ‘petitioner’. The Inspectorate of Government is also investigating the Fund because of information provided by the petitioner.
Byarugaba, 61,whose contract expired on November 1st, 2022 was appointed NSSF Chief Executive and Managing Director in 2010. Despite clocking the mandatory retirement age of 60 for the holders of the position, Byarugaba is eligible for reappointment under the new NSSF act.
The NSSF Board of Directors led by Dr. Peter Kimbowa had initially recommended for his reappointment on short term contract but the decision was overturned by Amongi.
President Museveni had also cautioned Amongi against asking the top Fund managers to leave on the account of age, noting in an August 6 letter that “it is better one consults quietly about these appointments before deciding.
“In the case of NSSF, the present group seem to have done a good job … good performance is not very common in parastatals. Where it occurs, the actors should be appreciated,” he noted before calling for a meeting to discuss the matter.
On the basis of the endorsement and a presidential directive for the same, on 7th December, 2022, Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja asked Minister Amongi to proceed with the appointment “as recommended by the Board to avoid any managerial gaps which can put the workers’ funds at risk”.
Nabbanja, in the letter revealed that the Minister had already proceeded to re-appoint Patrick Ayota (as Deputy Managing Director) who like Byarugaba had clocked 60 years which is the retirement age as provided for in the NSSF Act. Ayota is now the Acting Managing Director for NSSF.
She said that the reappointment of Byarugaba and Ayota on non-renewable performance contracts of five years was to put them in position to lead the Fund’s new strategy following the amendments to the Act by Parliament.
However, Minister Amongi protested the move and instead called for an investigation into the former MD’s conduct while at the fund, accusing him of abuse of office and mismanagement of the entity’s investments, among other issues. Amongi says the investigations must be done within the shortest time possible after the resolution by the Board to conduct the process.
Amongi is vehemently against the former NSSF Managing Director getting a new term of five years because sometime back, the latter allegedly refused to illegally allocate her Shs6 billion for an activity [sensitisation on voluntary saving].
According to a top officer inside the NSSF, Amongi’s insistence that Byarugaba leaves office is not about the retirement age as she has been arguing within government and media circles.
“As you can see, there has been constant harassment since we refused to allocate the Shs6bn to her. She even asked us to hand over to Patrick Ayota [Acting NSSF managing director] who was older. So, it was nothing to do with age.”
It was also been established that upon realization that the board wanted to maintain the status quo of leadership at the fund, Amongi swung into action running to several high-profiled individuals accusing Byarugaba of mismanaging the fund which allegations the board rejected telling her why she didn’t bring such before the issue of contract renewal came up and since she is the political supervisor of the fund why she hadn’t invited the investigative arms of government to probe the fund.
“She is the complaint through Sam Lyomoki who has been drafting these allegations under the pretense of workers union and for that, we have rejected her allegations against us (board members and top managers). We are also concerned on why those alleging mismanagement at the fund are only interested in Byarugaba and yet he had a Deputy Managing Director in the name of Patrick Ayota among other top manager?” asked one of the board members.
Mr. Byarugaba appears before the select committee:
Appearing before the select committee last Friday, Mr. Byarugaba said that his reappointment will “avert [any] reputational damage.”
“I would like the investigations to be done but there is no reason for me not to be in office while these investigations are being done because it has happened before [and] therefore all these things can happen while I am in office,” he said as quoted by Daily Monitor newspaper.
“Parliament should consider the removal of dual supervision of the Fund as this has proved to stifle decision making and on the part of accountability,” Mr Byarugaba told the lawmakers.
The amended NSSF Act gives the Finance minister and the counterpart at the Labour docket supervisory powers over the Shs17 trillion Fund. Mr Byarugaba reckons this negatively affects the administration of the Fund, not least because it slows down the decision-making process.
“It would be better that we have one top [person] in charge. For me, it is the principle that dual reporting has already shown its ugly head,” Mr Byarugaba added.
The immediate past NSSF boss didn’t also mince on his words when he openly accused Ms Amongi of muddling in the Fund’s day-to-day activities such as running the rule over its budget.
“In less than one year, once we have transferred back to the [Labour] ministry, corruption, influence peddling, delay in decision making, [and other] scandals are back to haunt the savings. We had left the press but we are back to it,” Mr Byarugaba said, adding, “The press by the way are happy with this. They love it. It sells their paper. Unfortunately, while they make their money, the Fund’s reputation derails.”
Mr Byarugaba also told lawmakers on that he broke down and cried when he heard Mr. Matua making sweeping claims about his persona on a local radio station.
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