Emyooga saga: Kadaga orders Finance committee to call meet for MPs to discuss UGX250b Kitty

The general perception on the UGX250 billion package the Ministry of Finance channeled through the Microfinance Support Centre (MSC) is to operationalise President Yoweri Museveni’s presidential initiative on wealth and job creation, known as Emyooga.

The emyooga money packed in the 2020/2021 financial year budget was supposed to benefit a total of 18 groups with different enterprises in every Constituency across the country with each supposed to receive UGX30m to help members start businesses. Each constituency is supposed to have received Shs256m for distribution to the successful beneficiaries.

The emyooga funds target specialized skills groups such as; Boda Boda motorcyclists, Women entrepreneurs, Carpenters, Salon operators, Taxi operators, Welders, Market venders, Youth leaders, Persons with Disabilities, Produce dealers, Mechanics, Tailors, Journalists, Performing Artists, Veterans, Fishermen and elected local leaders.

During the campaigns through November and December last year, the money would arrive in the districts shortly before or after the President campaigns there. The President would emphasize that the money was not meant for sharing among the members but was instead supposed to be used to start a business to benefit them all as a way of fighting the unemployment in the country.

However, since the money arrived in districts, there have been a lot of questions regarding the distribution process as there remain claims that some of the members of the groups had not seen the money despite paying membership fees. 

The President, during campaigns, emphasized that there was no need to pay membership fees or any form of subscription fees in order to benefit from the emyooga package.

The questions from the supposed beneficiaries today made it to the floor of Parliament as Members of Parliament demanded for explanations from the Ministry of Finance. 

Overwhelmed by the demands, Speaker Rebecca Kadaga has ordered the Committee on Finance, Planning and Economic Development to convene a meeting in which all MPs will interface with the Minister of Microfinance Haruna Kasolo and the technical team implementing the emyooga money.

“This matter of Emyooga has been raised here on the floor several times.  I want to instruct the Committee on Finance to convene a meeting over that issue. The meeting should be attended by all of you to be able to understand this matter” the Speaker ruled.

The matter was raised by Kinkizi West MP James Kaberuka who said that most of his constituents supposed to benefit from the emyooga initiative have lost out much as there are reports that their groups have received the money.

Kaberuka said government needs to explain through Parliament how efficient the emyooga initiative has been operationalised so far.

“Much as this emyooga program was a catching word in the campaigns, it has remained a nightmare because members of these groups have been told to pay membership fees of UGX25000 each but they are still complaining about the money,” Kaberuka said.

The Leader of the Opposition in Parliament (LoP), Betty Aol Ocan reported that the MPs are facing tough times with the voters whose hopes to benefit from the emyooga funds are diminishing by the day.

She demanded that the programme be reviewed so that it is overhauled in case it is not satisfactory enough.

State Minister for Planning David Bahati unsuccessfully convinced Parliament by stating that his colleague Kasolo had made a thorough explanation to the Finance Committee about the progress of the non-revolving fund.

“It is not a nightmare because this money is not for sharing but working capital for the groups. This money is also not supposed to have collateral and therefore we are sending a message to District Commercial Officers not to charge anyone” the Minister said.

According to information on the MSC website, the beneficiaries of the emyooga are supposed to be Ugandans aged 18 and above and they should be subscribing to a given category or enterprise at the village level.

Much as the Minister insisted that the members of these groups are not supposed to pay anything, the MSC website indicates that each member of a group shall pay not more than Shs20,000 for both membership and annual subscription.