Gen Katumba Clears Self as Museveni’s Handpicked Uganda Airlines CEO Bamuturaki ends up Embarrassing Him

Line minister, Gen Edward Katumba Wamala had rejected orders from the President to elevate Jennifer Arnold Lenkai aka Jennifer Bamuturaki to the job of the CEO of the national airliner. Museveni issued the orders to the minister amidst the search for the suitable CEO. The airliner had forked out a total of nine three million shillings to Price Water Coopers by the time the president issued the orders, to advertise the job and finally pick out the best candidate.

Katumba first hesitated to do as instructed by the President who contacted, and pushed down his throat, the desire for Jennifer`s elevation. Before all these, the Inspector of Government, Olive Namisango Betty Kamya had arrested and prosecuted the sitting CEO, Zambian expatriate Cornwell Muleya, over some suspicious charges. Those in the know opine that Kamya was merely used to get Muleya out of the way, in order to create a vacancy at the apex of the national airliner which Bamuturaki was waiting to fill up.

Bamuturaki had worked at the airlines previously in some top job from which, Muleya fired her for reported incompetence and, talking a lot of divisive politics. Yet, Museveni has a group lately, of what he calls patriotic young Ugandans capable of rendering public service, even without being paid too much money. For the record, Bamuturaki’s salary is just shy of hitting the mouth-watering UGX100 figure per month. Right now, its staggering around UGX87M. That’s too much money in regard to other Ugandans working elsewhere and who are even better educated and experienced than Museveni’s favorite girl.

Bamuturaki (R) appearing before Parliament last week (Photo:URN)

Academic flaws

Appearing before the Parliament’s Cosase committee this week, Bamuturaki was shamed after legislators ambushed her with questions related to her education. It emerged that she doesn’t possess the post graduate qualifications. Yet, such happens to be one of the requirements needed for one to occupy the job she is occupying at Uganda airlines. Much as the woman told the press recently how she had enrolled for a post graduate course in 2004, it emerges today that she has never completed the same, twenty years later.

This leaves one wondering whether she actually enrolled for the course she talked about in the first place, or she was merely telling a yarn. Small wonder then, that the President handpicked Bamuturaki in order to help her escape the interviewing process where she would have been eliminated for the big job, on such crucial grounds. Despite lacking the requisite academic papers, Bamuturaki argues that she can do the job perfectly, nonetheless, because she acted as CEO previously at the same station for a year.

Whereas what the legislators are doing is very commendable a job, the same is merely academic at best, and a fishing expedition, at worst. The inquiry is unlikely to change anything since the President, who is the Alpha and Omega, rarely listens to what other arms of government have to tell or advise him. The immediate example to demonstrate Museveni’s disregard for Parliament is the coffee deal whose beneficiary is Enrica Pinetti. While the same Cosase committee and the whole parliament too, declared the deal as flawed and monopolistic, the President, on the other hand, insists that it will go on, no matter what.

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Stephen Kasozi Muwambi: Mr. Stephen Kasozi Muwambi is a seasoned crime investigative writer, majoring in judicial-based stories. His two decades’ experience as a senior investigative journalist has made him one of the best to reckon on in Uganda. He can also be reached via [email protected]