MPs okay additional sh83.335b for Parliamentary Commission

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KAMPALA - Members of Parliament on the budget committee voted to approve an additional shillings 83.335 billion for the Parliamentary Commission.

The funds are meant to address a projected budget shortfall.

This comes amidst ongoing economic challenges and scrutiny of government spending.

The approval is highlighted in the 2024/25 National Budget Framework Paper (NBFP) which was tabled by Finance State Minister Henry Musasizi recently.

Reports reviewed by New Vision Online indicate that in the ongoing fiscal year, the commission realised a budgetary shortfall of shillings 67.619 billion with respect to legislative oversight and representation functions.

Oversight

Part of the aforementioned shillings 83.335 billion shall also be directed toward catering for foreign benchmarking trips of lawmakers.

According to the budget report, the budget committee was also informed that there is a need to provide additional funding for Members of Parliament to participate in regional and international parliamentary activities so as to enhance on the skills of processing Parliament business expeditiously for improved performance.

Notably, the committee also okayed a provision of additional shillings 8.176 billion to the Parliamentary Commission to facilitate committees to undertake Parliamentary oversight function efficiently and effectively during the 2024/25 financial year.

Allowances

Each individual MP signs off shillings 50,000 per committee sitting. The MPs are also entitled to refreshments like tea and escorts including mandazi, chapatti, and yellow bananas. On average each committee has 32 members.

This was highlighted by Jonathan Odur (Erute South, UPC) during an interview recently. 

“The budget is usually shillings two to three million per committee sitting within Parliament. Committee meetings outside Parliament (inland field oversight visits) attract a per diem of shillings 400,000 per MP per day. Most field activities last 3-5 days.

Foreign oversight trips attract per diem of $720 (about shillings 2.68 million) per MP and $400 (roughly shillings 1.5 million) per staff. Air tickets depend on the destination,” Odur said.

Committee funding challenges

Outgoing Government Assurances committee chairperson Betty Nambooze Bakireke (Mukono Municipality, NUP), said funding has been one of the key challenges she faced.

While handing over leadership on January 25, 2024, Nambooze described her two-and-a-half-year tenure as nightmarish.  

“In situations where donors pull out like it has been in the last two-and-a-half years, they continue to work without staff. Even young people who turn up as volunteers, Parliament cannot afford to pay them the smallest thing like lunch. The few people who are deployed here by Parliament are overworked,” she said.

Nambooze added “At times, the chairperson has to facilitate the committee from her own pocket. This is so challenging.”

As a result of this funding challenge, she revealed that the committee has not undergone induction and benchmarked on best practices abroad.

According to records seen by New Vision Online, the Government Assurances Committee travelled twice to Pretoria, South Africa, and once to Ghana’s Parliament.

These trips bordered on leadership and accountability. On the other hand, they have undertaken eight inland trips.  

“Our budget for foreign travel has not been utilised fully. There are so many benchmarking trips that the committee was supposed to undertake but requests for funds have always been met with excuses,” she said.

However, Parliament communications director Chris Obore tagged this to budget suppression measures that were instituted at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic to prevent the economy from falling apart.

“There have been budget cuts across the Government including Parliament. This has affected activities for all committees and departments. When the budget situation improves, all activities will be done but for now, we are all operating what is available hence reprioritisation,” Obore said.