Trade Ministry clarifies exaggerated expenses on document transport, Laptop & Vehicle purchases

The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Cooperatives, the Ministry Permanent Secretary Geraldine Ssali has issued a statement clarifying the alleged exaggerated figure of Shs400 million reportedly spent on transporting documents from Farmers House on Parliamentary Avenue to Entebbe.

“The fact is, the ferrying of documents to Entebbe cost the ministry Shs59.3 million in total, including disassembling of office furniture, packaging materials/pallets, hire of closed body cargo tracks, loading, wages for casual labourers, and fuel,” stated the PS.

Regarding the procurement and distribution of laptops, Ssali clarifies that 38 laptops were indeed procured to enable staff to work from home during the renovation period. However, the affected staff individually picked up the laptops from Farmers House at the ministry offices and they were not delivered to individual homes.

The Permanent Secretary also provides details on the renovation of office space at Farmers House, noting that the Ministry received a Supplementary Budget of UGX 5 billion for renting office space and an additional UGX 3 billion for the fiscal year 2022/23. The total amount of UGX 8 billion was allocated for rent per year. The Ministry decided to renovate the premises at a lower cost instead of incurring recurring rental expenses.

“We weighed all the options and decided that renovating at a much lesser cost would be more favourable than incurring recurring rental expenses. Our objective was to improve the livelihood and working conditions of the staff at MTIC,” she explained.

The PS noted that all expenditures and decisions regarding the renovation were in accordance with the Uganda Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets (PPDA) Act, and the Solicitor General approved the renovation of the premises.

Addressing the purchase of ministerial vehicles, Ssali explains that the allocated UGX 2.8 billion from the fiscal year 2021/2022 budget was utilized to purchase new vehicles for the top management.

“The fleet of vehicles provided to the Ministry was obsolete and frequently experienced breakdowns, which caused inconvenience to the ministers and even posed safety risks. The procurement of new vehicles was necessary to ensure the smooth functioning of the Ministry,” explained Ssali.

She adds that the vehicles procured underwent full inspection by the Ministry of Works and Transport and that the Ministry provided a summary of the vehicles’ status at the time of purchase, all of which were brand new.

“The vehicles underwent full inspection reports from the Ministry of Works and Transport, and the procurement followed the Open Domestic Bidding process. The contract for the delivery of the vehicles was awarded to Suma Bolt Logistics, the Best Evaluated Bidder, following all government procurement laws and clearance by the Solicitor General.”

The contract for the delivery of the five station wagons was awarded to Suma Bolt Logistics, the Best Evaluated Bidder, for a contract sum of UGX 2.82 billion, which fell within the procurement budget threshold.

Her statement follows concerns raised by the Parliamentary Committee on Trade, Industry and Tourism during an interaction with officials from the Ministry of Trade Industry and Cooperatives. During the meeting, it was alleged that the Ministry spent 400 Million Shillings to transport documents from Kampala to Entebbe stores during renovations.

Under the leadership of Hon. Mwine Mpaka, the committee has decided to summon, the Permanent Secretary, Geraldine Ssali as they investigate the alleged irregularities.