By Patriot Corps
The Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Joel Ssenyonyi, along with other opposition MPs, has decided to boycott the upcoming regional parliamentary sittings, decrying what they see as an extravagant misuse of taxpayer money by Parliament’s top leadership.
Speaking to the media on August 6, 2024, Ssenyonyi lambasted the Shs 20 billion budget earmarked for these sittings, describing it as a flagrant waste of public funds. He argued that the leadership is channeling money into an endeavor that is neither financially prudent nor logically defensible to the citizens of Uganda.
“We understand that approximately Shs 5 billion will be spent on each of these sittings, with the first one in Gulu, followed by Mbarara, Mbale, and one of Uganda’s central districts. This expenditure is a bitter pill for us to swallow and impossible to justify to the public. It is a waste, plain and simple. We do not want to be complicit in this farce, as it does not make economic or logical sense,” Ssenyonyi declared.
He further cautioned that Parliament’s ongoing engagement in such wasteful activities will only fan the flames of public outrage, already heightened by pervasive corruption and abuse of office within the institution.
“The general public has been rightfully castigating Parliament, given the rampant corruption that has permeated different offices, starting from the very top. And now, to engage in activities that defy explanation—this is adding insult to injury,” Ssenyonyi remarked.
He also took issue with the billions spent annually on renting facilities, questioning why this is necessary when the new chambers of Parliament should have been completed in 2019.
The first Regional Parliamentary Sitting is scheduled for August 2024 in Gulu City, but it remains to be seen how this initiative will be received in light of the growing dissent from opposition MPs.