The budget committee of Parliament says it is overwhelmed by the growing number of requests for supplementary budgets.
The revelation was made by Hon Amos Lugoloobi the committee chairman who said the worsening trend is undermining the credibility of annual planning and budgeting as entities appear to be avoiding scrutiny during the normal budget process, in favor of supplementary budgeting whose expenditure can be allowed to take effect prior to the approval of parliament.
Lugoloobi was Tuesday presenting a report on the supplementary expenditure for the financial year 2019/2020 to the house chaired by Speaker Rt. Hon Rebbecca Kadaga.
He told the house that his committee was informed that Kampala Capital City Authority, KCCA was in the financial year 2019/2020 given an indicative figure of UGX 30.5 billion for road maintenance but only received UGX22.3 billion to carry on routine maintenance in the city.
“The shortfall together with the heavy rain have resulted into severe damage to the city road network which needs urgent intervention to keep it motorable. The committee recommends approval of UGX 10 billion to address payments for the road maintenance works under KCCA” Lugoloobi told the house.
On the issue of resettling street children, the committee chairman said they have considered the plight of these children picked recently by the ministry of Gender and now housed at different permanent and temporary centres and the challenges associated with rehabilitating, feeding and resettling them as well as ensuring surveillance to limit new ones from getting into the cities and other urban areas.
“The committee therefore recommends that UGX 2.4 billion be provided as requested to ameliorate the problem of street kids” he noted.
In total, Parliament approved a supplementary request of UGX 33.3 billion.
Of the approved money, UGX 3.9 billion will go to the Ministry of Finance to cater for salary obligations, 10 billion for Uganda Industrial Research Institute (UIRI) to operationalize the machining, manufacturing and industrial skills training centre at Namanve and others.
Also, Local Governments will receive 776 million to cater for additional Local revenue collected by Luweero District, Mitooma District and Kyenjojo District, while an additional co-funding of Shillings 9.062bn will go to the Uganda Inter-governmental Fiscal Transfer (UGIFT) to Local Governments for Seed Secondary Schools and upgrade of Health Centre IIs to Health Centre IIIs as Government policy.
