The newly created State House Investors Protectorate Unit will be headed by Col Edith Nakalema, who was appointed to the role by the president.
CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES | NOW THEN DIGITAL — Uganda’s President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has appointed Col Edith Nakalema, his senior advisor on anti-corruption, to head the newly created State House Investors Protectorate Unit.
The president’s deputy press secretary, Mr Faruk Kirunda, confirmed the appointment. This comes after the president recently promised to create another anti-corruption unit inside State House to combat corruption in public offices.
“I am using this Labour Day to tell everybody that we are going to have a big fight. I am going to set up another small unit in my office where the investors can ring directly if anybody asks them for a bribe or delays decisions,” he said.
Uganda already has a considerable number of constitutional bodies, including the Inspectorate of Government (IG), Auditor General, Parliament, Judiciary and police that fight corruption.
A parallel organ at State House
This new unit will join at least two known parallel organs, the State House Anti-Corruption Unit (Shacu) and the Health Monitoring Unit, which are also located inside State House and serve the same purpose.
Shacu is heavily involved in investigating widespread corruption in the country’s land offices and conducts parallel special investigations inside government.
Uganda loses more than Shs9.1 trillion ($2.5 billion) to corruption annually, according to a 2022 study commissioned by the Inspectorate of Government and conducted by the Government Transparency Institute.
President’s fight against corruption
Speaking during a Labour Day celebration on May 1, 2023, President Museveni singled out corrupt politicians and civil servants as “parasites” who are the main cause of poor infrastructure in the country.
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He denounced a group within the tax body, Uganda Revenue Authority, which he said goes around blackmailing traders by demanding bribes.
“These are the ones interfering with your future. They are the ones disturbing investors, asking for bribes and delayed decision-making which raise the cost of doing business in Uganda,” Museveni said.
In his speech, Museveni announced the establishment of the new unit, stating that he would create a small unit in his office where investors can report any cases of bribery or delayed decision-making.
Col Edith Nakalema’s tweet
Speaking about her new role, Col Edith Nakalema tweeted, “Feeling incredibly thankful for the outpouring of congratulatory messages upon my appointment. Glory to God for his continued blessings. I remain grateful for the continued trust of H.E President Kaguta Museveni. Lastly, my heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of you, my dependable friends, for your unwavering love and support. Ready to serve with your collective efforts.”
Feeling incredibly thankful for the outpouring of congratulatory messages upon my appointment.
Glory to God for his continued blessings.
I remain grateful for the continued trust of H.E President @KagutaMuseveni.
Lastly, my heartfelt appreciation goes out to all of you, my…— Col Edith Nakalema (@edthnaka) May 6, 2023
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