Government Master Plan to Root Out Corruption
By Our reporter
FORT PORTAL – To check corruption, the government has drafted a plan where all civil servants will wear cameras.
The plan is already being piloted with Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) staff which has shown positive results. The year 2023 will be remembered in Uganda’s history as a year that saw high-ranking government officials implicated in corruption scandals notably the ‘iron sheets scandal.’ Other scandals, such as the ghost staff in public service where Uganda loses an estimated Shs18- 53 billion annually, are another reason for the public to worry.
Presiding over the 19th graduation of Uganda Pentecostal University in Fort Portal City, February 117th 2024, Security Minister Maj. Gen Muhwezi said the detailed plan will be made public soon.
“Civil servants are going to wear cameras. All staff of URA, Police among others are to have cameras so that we see what they are doing. The scenario of government employees taking bribes will be history,” he said.
Muhwweri urged the graduates, “The degree you have got is to open your mind to use the knowledge to create jobs.”
The camera imitative follows President Yoweri Museveni launch of the Electronic Investor Protection Portal (EIPP) which is aimed at helping investors, both foreign and local, to report complaints about corruption, bribes, and delays directly to the Office of the President.
The State House Investors Protection Unit headed by Col Edith Nakalema worked with the National Information Technology Authority (Nita) to develop the portal.
The portal enables the president to directly monitor how government agencies respond to investor complaints.
Col Nakalema said this initiative followed presidential guidance for government agencies to embrace digital transformation to limit human involvement in transactions and reduce or combat corruption.
President Museveni has repeatedly vowed to end corruption, one of the biggest challenges to public service delivery.
