A probe committee into the financial mismanagement in Kampala City council (KCC) has found the town clerk, James Seggane, liable for gross financial mess in KCC.
The probe committee chaired by Dr, Mayambala Sempala, was instituted last year following public complaints about the disappearance of nine billion shillings in tax payer's money.
The committee was given the mandate to scrutinize all books of accounts and vouchers of KCC from 2000 to 2005 with a view of detecting fraud or misappropriation of funds and to investigate the officers suspected to have been involved in financial mismanagement.
A copy of the report obtained by Uganda Radio Network indicates gross financial irregularities in Kampala district Land board, which was masterminded by Segane as the chief signatory to KCC's accounts.
The report specifically singles out the Kampala District Land Board Account from which cash withdrawals amounting to 354 million shillings were accrued within a period of four months. The report describes the withdrawals as unusual.
The report states that there were no clear and proper accounting procedures and funds remitted and withdrawn to KCC accounts were never monitored.
The report quotes the Kampala district public accounts committee saying that there was persistent failure by the chief internal auditor, Joseph Bayitwa, to audit the KCC books of accounts, paving way for the financial loopholes.
According to the report, KCC's finance department was characterized by internal bickering which made it difficult for the finance director to perform her duties.
The probe committee recommends that Segane being the chief signatory must be sacked and prosecuted. Segane was interdicted in September last year for the mismanagement and misappropriation of about 1.8 billion shillings.
The committee also recommends that Florence Barigye, the personnel officer, must be interdicted for incompetence. Barigye is accused of mismanaging the Pay as You Earn fund and causing financial loss to the council.
The report further recommends the interdiction of KCC's Chief Internal Auditor for failing to institute internal checks and balances to detect financial fraud.
The Report does not rule out the possibility that KCC could have connived with Stanbic Bank officials to endorse the uncharacteristic withdrawal of huge sums of money. The team recommends legal action against Stanbic Bank and Uganda Revenue Authority to compensate for the loss of KCC funds.
Meanwhile the committee has exonerated Kewaza Muwonge, the former District Director of Education from any wrong doing and ordered that his interdiction be lifted.Kewaza was interdicted jointly with Segane and Prossy Sebina, for allegedly embezzling more than two billion shillings from the KCC coffers.
