The Railways Scapegoats: A Zoom into the Deceptive Firing of the Top Executive Members of Uganda Railways Corporation

Whenever the regime in Uganda has been plotting to bring in friends and cronies at anyone of its agencies, a media campaign has been run to psychologically prepare the public to believe that all had been not going well at any one of the targeted particular agencies. The quick and latest example of such kind of scenario happened at the regime’s Equal Opportunity Commission (EOC’s) agency.

Following the EOC’s top CEO, Sylvia Muweebwa Ntambi’s stance rejecting to be compromised to accept paying exorbitant rent at one of the wealthy Asian tycoons’ buildings in town, a story was swiftly fabricated and widely circulated to give the impression that she had been turning down the offer, looking to blackmail the landlord into giving her bribes.

That done, the Inspector General of Government (IGG) was expediently brought on board by the schemers. And, following which, the country’s top graft fighter would swiftly cite Muweebwa for bribery. True to the interests of the intriguers, poor lady Muweebwa would, thereafter, swiftly be dragged to the anti-corruption court and deposited at Luzira. Not so surprising! For, the same tribunal had been talked to, to strictly send Muweebwa to prison.

While Muweebwa was away, another person was brought in to replace her. The rent deal which she had rejected, was also possibly cleared. And do you know what? The charges would end up unceremoniously dropped by the IGG herself. This, without bothering to render any kind of iota of evidence to implicate Muweebwa into the bribery charges which her office had, after all, expediently conjured up to get poor Muweebwa out of the way.

Muweebwa has since been taken on as one of the top board members of the regime’s own Uganda Electricity Transmission firm. But so much for a person who had been cited for corruption and, not cleared of the same, prior to giving her another big government job! Muweebwa’s would later on be followed up with yet another scenario of Uganda Airline’s Zambian national expatriate CEO, Cornwell Muleya.

Just as Muweebwa had been controversially forced out from the regime’s foregoing EOC’s leadership, the IGG would similarly cite the Zambian for purportedly having disrespected lawful summons intended to grill him on issues to do with graft and nepotism during employment of staff at the national airliner. Once Muleya had been netted, the dreaded IGG would swiftly draw up the criminal charges and hastily arraign him at the anti-corruption court.

Meantime, the appointing authority would swiftly work on bringing in one Jennifer Bamuturaki, a daughter of his high school OB and political mentor, to replace Muleya.

Bamuturaki would be pushed through against an ongoing expert process to find a suitable replacement for Muleya. That process had been duly sent in motion and paid for by the responsible line ministry of works and transport head, Gen Edward Katumba Wamala. But the appointing authority would emphatically tell the previously hesitant minister to bypass the ongoing candidates’ verification process and just give the big job to Bamuturaki.

After it had later emerged that Bamuturaki actually lacked the requisite qualifications for the CEO, the appointing authority would swear to stick by his preferred choice no matter what. Katumba would later confess how he could no longer question the boss’ preferred CEO since the same boss is too powerful to be questioned by anybody or authority.

Coming to the firing of top managers at the Uganda Railways Corporation, the same was summarily carried out by the same big man who had also summarily sacked Muweebwa and Muleya previously. The same big man has since tasked his loyal IGG to prosecute the victims of the firing over charges regarding to corruption and financial sleaze. As it now turns out, the big man is rumored to be having in mind, a senior cadre who he is itching to let call the shots at Uganda Railways.

Investigations indicate how Joy Kabatsi, a former minister and MP, is the one who the big man wishes to make the boss at Uganda Railways. The line minister, Gen Katumba Wamala is thought to have been resisting Kabatsi’s appointment in preference of giving the fired bosses themselves the opportunity to continue with reviving the corporation.

It is also understood that a number of huge loans have been picked from foreign countries and foreign agencies by the regime whose top CEO is believed to be uncomfortable with entrusting such huge sums of cash with strangers. We know that the national assembly in May this year permitted the regime to take loans from a bank in Spain and another one in Africa, all worth more than 1.5 trillion to upgrade the railway system.

The regime is known also to be in advanced stages currently, of upgrading the railway line from Kampala to the port of Mombasa in Kenya. Subsequently, the country’s top appointing authority is understood to be seeking to entrust the multi-billion refurbishment job to his own trusted cadres as opposed to strangers. For that matter, insiders opine, how the changes at the Uganda Railways which were revealingly effected by the big man himself, were expediently done to give the big jobs to the trusted cadres who, he feels cannot let him down.

Author Profile

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]