Committee tasked on lands ministry relocation funds

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Parliament's committee on physical infrastructure was tasked Tuesday with providing financial details on the planned relocation of the lands ministry offices in Kampala.

The move is meant to pave the way for the construction of new Parliament’s offices.

Pian county MP Remegio Achia, the vice-chairperson of the budget committee, issued the directive during an engagement with his physical infrastructure counterpart, Nwoya county legislator Tonny Awany.

The directive followed concerns raised by the substantive budget committee chairperson Patrick Opolot Isiagi, who represents Kachumbala county. 

Isiagi pointed out that while the lands ministry has been allocated sh127 billion in the forthcoming fiscal year’s budget to this end, the same item had supposedly been settled in a previous supplementary.

Members of Parliament on the budget committee. (Credit: Parliament)

“Have we turned billions into coins in this country? Does that mean you are going to build for lands [ministry] a city? Now you are talking of relocating lands and you are not finishing the chambers. Which one do you do first?” Isiagi posed.

“Mr Chairman, get us what this sh127 billion is about. Is it the cost of buying a house? Can you harmonise the supplementaries we gave you?

"Sh50 billion for completion of Tororo-Gulu railway and Sh25.77 billion under the Ministry of Lands, that you wanted to finish everything, and you have come again requesting for the same," said Achia.

Background

In January this year, President Yoweri Museveni ordered Parliament to take over ownership of property occupied by the Development House, Uganda Prisons Service, and the Ministry of Lands on Parliament Avenue.

Documents seen by New Vision show that the entity planned to use the sh127 billion to construct a new home. 

However, in the second budget call circular for the 2024/25 financial year, the finance ministry directed that no new construction of office accommodation would be allowed. Instead, it implored for focus to be put on set strategies.

The President’s intervention was in response to the surging number of MPs, which currently stands at 527 directly elected alone.

With the new parliamentary chambers yet to be completed, the House has had to rent office space for its members in surrounding buildings, including Queens Chambers and Kingdom Kampala.

Recently, while unveiling the Alternative Budget for the 2025/26 financial year, the Nakawa West MP and Leader of Opposition, Joel Ssenyonyi, called for the downsizing of the House.

“We are 529 members of Parliament, for 46 million people. That is not right," said Ssenyonyi.

"I can see some of you looking at me angrily, but it is the reality. When we all show up in Parliament, we actually don’t have where to sit.

"They have been promising to complete the new chambers. I think the initial completion date was 2019. We are in 2025.

“Could it be that the owners of these facilities are probably in one way or the other engineering the delay of our chambers? Because for as long as our chambers are complete, Parliament will not be spending billions of shillings to hire offices for MPs and staff,” added Ssenyonyi.

Previously speaking to New Vision, Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda said this was long overdue.

“This Parliament was made for 100 MPs, they expanded it during the National Resistance Council (NRC) to 150. We are now the size of a secondary school.

"Go to the canteen at lunch time and you see,” said Ssemujju.