The Ugandan government has announced that it will be restructuring the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) in an effort to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of its operations.
The move is a part of the government’s strategy to better align the OPM with its priorities and objectives.
President Museveni has been urged by the head of the public service to choose a gallant permanent secretary who can bring about change in the Prime Minister’s Office.
The secretary to the cabinet, Ms. Lucy Nakyobe, stated at official memorial service for the late Keith Muhakanizi on Saturday in Kololo that if the office is not reorganized, scandals will continue.
Before traveling to Milan, Italy for specialized care, Muhakanizi, according to Ms. Nakyobe, had foreseen a scandal involving Karamoja iron sheets and informed the ministers that the iron sheets would give them issues, but they disregarded him.
According to Muhakanizi, the ministers should be accountable for their actions.
“How did the iron sheets saga come out when he was the permanent secretary? He had seen the circus coming. He had been to my office a few months before it happened. One afternoon he had a top management meeting in his office and he came accusing me of not inducting ministers,” she said.
According to Ms. Nakyobe, Muhakanizi claimed to have worked in top management because ministers were present in all departments, including retail, procurement, accounts, and human resources.
Nakyobe further stated that Muhakanizi had earlier on informed her that In case she heard anything, she should be aware that Muhakanizi disagreed with the ministers and had warned them.
“And indeed after a month and a half, this problem came and when it came he called me and told me didn’t I predict so? We took it lightly and thought it would come to pass I called him in Milan and told him this thing is making the government look ugly,” she said.
She claimed that he told her that the ministers had been warned and should accept responsibility because he had already prepared his statement. If he returned, he would offer a solution, but in the interim, he advocated for the reform of the Prime Minister’s Office.
She claimed that because of the multiple scandals that had rocked the office of the prime minister, she had instructed him to draft a cabinet white paper suggesting the restructure when he got back from Milan. This would allow the office of the prime minister to focus on its function of coordination and eliminate surveillance.