The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
By Stephen Kafeero
The government has earmarked shs 44.08 billion to address salary short falls in the months of May and June. The most affected people have been teachers and police officers with the former threatening to go on strike while the management of the latter had to improvise with food rationing.
This revelation was made by the permanent secretary Ministry of Finance Keith Muhakanizi wile addressing the media at the launch of the Budget website. He said that the aim of the website was to ensure a wider coverage and enhance accessibility of budget information and improved service delivery.
The website at www.budget .go.ug has 4 components which include the budget library, a section of your local budget, another for people to stay informed, and also one for providing feedback. “We are going to manage the budget together as stakeholders and we shall ensure transparency,” said Muhakanizi.
Government also released quarter one releases for the FY 2013/2014 amounting to shs 2.35 trillion for implementation of government programs and projects. He said that they had requested the auditor general to verify all the questionable accounts and that disciplinary measures will be taken on accounting officers who have ghosts on their payroll.
Muhakanizi called on all the stake holders to ensure that the funds requested are used for their intended purposes
Kenneth Mugambe the Commissioner Budget said that they have plans to integrate mobile phone technology into the website where budget information will be sent to the public through SMS applications via mobile phones.
He said that the move will enable the public leaders such as MPs, civil servants and the general public to have first hand information on service delivery facilities existing in their areas and monitor how public resources are being utilized.
