Court Confirms: Mpuuga’ Shs500m Award Was Budgeted, Demands Disciplinary Action for Clerk to Parliament

In a landmark decision, the High Court in Kampala has ruled that the Shs500 million service award given to former Leader of Opposition Mathias Mpuuga, along with a Shs400 million award distributed among three National Resistance Movement (NRM) commissioners, was indeed part of the national budget approved by Parliament. 
Justice Singiza suggested in his August 12, 2024 order that the Attorney General quickly reviews and harmonizes a Salary and Emoluments Review Board Bill, whose goal would be to review and harmonize emoluments and allowances of political and government officials.

In his ruling on August 12, 2024, Justice Singiza proposed that the Attorney General urgently consider a Salary and Emoluments Review Board Bill.

In his ruling on August 12, 2024, Justice Singiza proposed that the Attorney General urgently consider a Salary and Emoluments Review Board Bill.

This board would review and harmonize the emoluments and allowances of government and political leaders, potentially reducing the temptation to enhance emoluments under the guise of prize money. Such a board would report directly to the President.

Mr. Bwette had argued that the Parliamentary Commission’s decision to distribute Shs 1.7 billion among four individuals was illegal, oppressive, biased, irrational, and unfair.

He sought a declaration that the decision was "ultra vires and is null and void."

Court documents reveal that on May 6, 2022, the four commissioners Prossy Akampurira, Solomon Silwany, and Esther Afoyochan along with the Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, were awarded Shs 400 million each, with Mpuuga receiving Shs 500 million.

Bwette argued that this service award was not part of Parliament’s payment structures.

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This ruling confirms the legitimacy of these contentious awards but has also triggered disciplinary action against Clerk to Parliament, Adolf Mwesigye. The court has directed the Secretary to the Treasury to initiate proceedings against Mwesigye for his role in the decision-making and implementation of these awards.

Justice Douglas Karekona Singiza in a case filed  by a concerned citizen, Mr Daniel Bwette has ruled that the vote for Ex-Gratia payments was presented in the Appropriations Bill by the Executive and passed by Parliament. 

“In my view, it is probably not right for this Court to inquire into the procedure which the Executive and Parliament adopted while exercising their respective functions. One would expect that both bodies scrutinised the specific payments to be made, but that is beyond the ambit of this application. The oversight power of this Court in this matter remains focused on the procedure that the respondent followed in arriving at the decision on the service award, notwithstanding that the money used to pay for the impugned award was part of the national budget,” Justice Singiza said.