Fresh details have emerged about the troubles stalking the country’s national carrier, Uganda Airlines.
The airlines has been in the news in the recent past for the wrong reasons with accusations of mismanagement dogging the establishment.
Now a new dossier faults the former minister of State for Transport, Ms Joy Kabatsi for soliciting shs177m from the airline to fund her MP campaigns, according to reports.
“The recent outbursts by Ms Kabatsi… is derived from the fact that in December 2020, she did not only call the chief executive officer demanding $50,000 (about Shs177m) to fund her campaigns for MP, but sent her personal assistant in person to the airlines head offices in Entebbe to pick up the money from the chief executive officer…” the document quoted by Daily Monitor reads.
It adds that Kabatsi tried to influence the recruitment process, accusations she denies according to the reports.
READ ALSO: Museveni: Uganda Airlines Bosses Involved In Corruption Should Face Consequences
Troubles at the airline recently prompted a comment from President Yoweri Museveni who called for those involved in corruption to face the consequences.
“I had not flown using the @UG_Airlines, until yesterday. The crew is very good. When they were landing, I did not know we had landed. Regarding the alleged corruption in the airline, some elements in management and the board MUST face the consequences,” Museveni said after using a Uganda Airlines plane to and from Tanzania recently.
At the start of May, the minister of works and transport, General Katumba Wamala, sent home senior managers of Uganda National Airline Company Limited, which runs the state-owned Uganda Airlines. Those on the list include the company’s chief executive officer, Cornwell Muleya, who is on a 90-day suspension.
The entire company board of directors was also asked to step aside.
Acting CEO Jennifer Bamuturaki was fired at the end of her six-months’ probation back in 2020 for, among other mismanagement issues, having hired Abbavator, the media and PR firm she was closely linked to. It was a big conflict of interest that cost the airline hundreds of thousands of dollars in backhand deals and was the last straw for Muleya.
Abbavator allegedly over-invoiced Uganda Airlines to the tune of $232,000 (Shs 851.4m), which shot to $404,000 (Shs 1.4bn) yet the actual costs were $172,000 (Shs 631.2m).
The commercial director was also accused of using her position to establish external air stations on routes of Nairobi, Mombasa, Mogadishu, Mombasa, Dar es Salaam and Kirimanjaro.
The minister insists that managers were not suspended but asked to take accumulated leave. It’s an opportunity to ‘test the competence of their juniors who are now in charge’, he said when asked about the rationale of sending all senior managers on leave.
And the minister has indirectly admitted that there is an investigation. “Yes, we may be taking this time to look at how they have been doing business,” he said. The minister, however, declined to divulge the nature of the probe.