Members of the 10th Parliament have passed a 233-billion-Shillings State House budget for the financial year 2017/2018.
Members adopted a report by parliament's Presidential Affairs Committee on the proposed budget estimates presented by the committee chairperson, Nyabushozi County MP Fred Mwesigye, in a plenary session chaired by Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah on Thursday.
The report indicates that the 233 billion shillings is appropriated under recurrent expenditure while development budget takes 12.3 billion Shillings. Of the approved budget 18.4 billion is to fund travels abroad, another 18.4 billion is to cater for inland travels while staff allowances will take 17.1 billion. At least 3.4 billion shillings is set aside for special meals and drinks while classified expenditure takes 38.4 billion.
The others are vehicle maintenance budgeted at 7.2 billion, welfare and entertainment at 4.7 billion, and miscellaneous at 78 billion among others.
In what seemed to be a one-sided debate of the State House Budget, Opposition Chief Whip Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda questioned why State House is turned into the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party headquarters saying that party meetings held at State House cost Ugandans huge amounts of money.
Busongola North MP, William Nzoghu questioned why State House budget should be different from that of the Presidency. State House is funded under Vote 002 while the Office of the President is catered for under Vote 001. In the coming financial year, the later has been allocated 118.9 billion Shillings.
Nzoghu noted that State House and the Presidency are more of the same and that giving them separate budgets seems wastage of money.
Defending the budget, state minister for economic monitoring Kasirivu Atooki noted that State House was not being turned into a party headquarters but that the NRM is in the process of putting up headquarters.
He also clarified that NRM party meetings held at State House are particularly funded using party money but not finances allocated to State House as a Vote.
