Mathias Mpuuga, the Deputy President of the National Unity Platform (NUP) and the Member of Parliament for Nyendo-Mukungwe Division in Masaka City, has denied the allegations of corruption and abuse of office leveled against him by his own party and refused to resign as a Parliamentary Commissioner.
Mpuuga, who is also a former Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, issued a statement on Friday, March 1, 2024, in response to an unsigned document purportedly attributed to the NUP, which called for his resignation over his involvement in a corruption scandal that has rocked the Parliament of Uganda.
The scandal, which was exposed by an online protest under the hashtag #UgandaParliamentExhibition, accused Mpuuga and three other Parliamentary Commissioners of irregularly awarding themselves Shs 500 million (about US$ 140,000) each as a ‘one-time pay-off service award’ after serving only two years in the 10th Parliament. The ‘service award’ was passed during a secret meeting of the Parliamentary Commission held on May 6, 2022 in the Speaker’s boardroom at the Parliament Building.
Mpuuga said that he was committed to the core values of the NUP, which are Discipline, Reliability, Inclusiveness, Integrity, Patriotism, and Service, and that he had educated his comrades about the duties and roles of the Parliamentary Commission, which are well stipulated in the laws of the land.
He said that the Commission was responsible for voting funds to all political offices, including the Leader of the Opposition’s office, and for taking care of the welfare of ordinary members and their leaders in Parliament, including determining the range of legally permissible payments, such as salary, allowances, gratuity, honoraria, car grants, among others.
He said that the decisions of the Commission were not personal but collective in nature and that they were subjected to the relevant committees of Parliament for the legality, feasibility, sustainability, and relevancy. He said that to call any such payments corruption was the highest level of spite, double standards, and deliberate misrepresentation to the public and membership of the NUP on a purely selfish and malicious mission.
He said that if such payments amounted to corruption, all current and previous MPs would be compelled to refund to the public coffers monies paid as gratuity or honoraria, since no MP, current and previous, was not paid gratuity at the determination of the Parliamentary Commission.
He said that the campaign to character assassinate him was deliberate, well-orchestrated, and wet-funded and that he was ready for the worst if it took this sacrifice to return sanity and common sense to the politics of the NUP. He said that he was available as ever to help the young party get rid of any form of corruption from its rank and file, and especially that ingrained at the base of the party. He said that he accordingly declined the cowardly call on him to resign as a Parliamentary Commissioner, based on spite and deliberate misrepresentation for mischievous reasons.
He said that the general public was aware and alive to the internal intrigue and machinations within the NUP over the last two and a half years, during his occupation of the coveted office of the Leader of the Opposition. He said that it became the official style of different party leaders to undermine his work, including hiring bloggers to abuse and insult his person.
He said that he stayed committed and calm throughout these most compelling times, because the call to serve above self remained his creed. He said that he wished to assure the general membership of the NUP and all change-seeking forces that this would remain his resolve, and that none of his actions while leading the opposition as the Leader of the Opposition amounted to corruption or abuse of office.
He said that he committed that he would not be deterred by small-group-family interests being peddled to blur the bigger picture of how the party was being managed without transparency, and the general mistreatment of other leaders in the party. He said that he would not stop raising important questions on the actions, motivation, and direction of different actors in the party, even in the face of the current tribulations, well-choreographed to undermine him.
Mpuuga is a lawyer and a former teacher, who has been a vocal critic of the ruling party and the government of President Yoweri Museveni. He was the Leader of the Opposition in the 10th Parliament, and was recently replaced by Joel Ssenyonyi, the NUP spokesperson and MP for Nakawa West.
It is not clear how the NUP will react to Mpuuga’s statement and refusal to resign. The NUP, which is led by former presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine, said in a statement on Thursday that Mpuuga had admitted his wrongdoing and apologized for the same during an urgent meeting convened by the party president on Wednesday.
The statement said that Mpuuga was strongly advised that the moral thing to do in the circumstances was to step down from his role as Parliamentary Commissioner with immediate effect. The statement also reminded its leaders and members of the values and oath of the party, which are against corruption and abuse of office.
The corruption scandal involving Mpuuga and the other Commissioners has sparked outrage and condemnation from the public and civil society. Some have called for a thorough investigation and prosecution of the culprits, while others have demanded for a refund of the money.
The Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Anita Among, who is also the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Commission, has not yet commented on the scandal. Among, who is a member of the ruling party but was supported by the opposition to become the Speaker, has also been accused of receiving billions of shillings from Parliament as per diem for foreign travel.