The Inspector-General of Government (IGG) Betti Olive Kamya did not sanction the prosecution of Uganda Land Commission -ULC Chairperson Beatrice Nyakaisiki Byenkya, according to officials from the Inspectorate of Government (IG).
The issue came up during an interface between legislators and officials from the Inspectorate who appeared before the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament to present their financial year 2022/2023 budget estimates. Kamya was not in attendance, but the meeting was attended by two of her deputies Patricia Achan Okiria and Anne Twinomugisha Muhairwa
During the meeting, Fox Odoi-Oywelowo, the West Budama North East MP said that the Inspectorate of Government (IG) intends to eliminate mal-administration and administrative injustice yet IGG Kamya is pointed at by sections of the public for trying to settle personal scores by prosecuting ULC Chairperson Byenkya.
“Betti Olive Kamya was a supervisor of the Chairperson of Uganda Land Commission as a Minister, and they had fundamental disagreements that went to the floor of the House. And the disagreements involved matters of corruption on the part of the current IGG,” Odoi said.
He wondered why the Inspectorate did not look at its reputation and hand over the case against Byenkya to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) since it raises issues of conflict of interest.
Bugiri Municipality MP Asuman Basalirwa asked the Inspectorate of Government to inform the committee of the person who sanctioned the investigation and prosecution of Byenkya. He said that his question is to ascertain whether a conflict of interest was at play.
In response, Patricia Achan Okiria, the Deputy IGG told the committee that the matter against the land commission Chairperson is not personal but something involving the country which needs all heads put together and keenly look at the issue.
Anne Twinomugisha Muhairwe, the other Deputy IGG confirmed that she sanctioned Byenkya’s file and that IGG Kamya is not involved in the case. She wondered why the issue regarding the ULC chairperson has become a national matter yet the inspectorate is also investigating other officials in different Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
Byenkya was last week arraigned before the Anti-Corruption Court in Kampala presided over by Chief Magistrate Joan Aciro and charged with obstruction of search in the presence of her bodyguards from the Counter-Terrorism Unit of Police.
Court heard that Byenkya together with her bodyguards; Richard Anywar, Titus Wamono and Edward Turyatunga obstructed officials from the Inspectorate of Government from carrying out a search in the ULC offices on January 4, 2022. Byenkya denied the charges.
On October 12, 2021, the Lands Minister Judith Nabakooba suspended the management of the ULC and assumed duties of the Commission before directing the Inspectorate of Government –IG to interdict Byenkya and other commission leaders to pave way for investigations into allegations of misconduct, abuse of office and mismanagement of resources.
In line with the directive, the Inspectorate of Government officials went to conduct a search at ULC when they were allegedly obstructed by the accused persons.
Earlier, Byenkya on December 22, 2021, Byenkya petitioned the High Court challenging the legality of her interdiction. As a result, on December 29 2021, Justice Musa Ssekaana granted her a temporary injunction halting her interdiction until her case is determined.
Byenkya has since indicated that there are some political untouchables who want her out of office because they have reportedly grabbed public land and fear being exposed.
In 2020, the Auditor General’s report indicated that ULC did not have a land inventory and database for all government land and properties under its jurisdiction. The report also revealed that there was a liability of 9.4 billion shillings which did not have supporting documents and overstated compensation payables amounting to 15 billion shillings among other flaws.
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