The Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development Matia Kasaija , has distanced his Ministry from being responsible for the delayed payment of salaries of some civil servants in the local governments.
The minister appeared in Parliament yesterday following complaints from Workers MP Margaret Rwabushaija and Ngora County MP David Abala.
Hon. David Abala, (NRM, Ngora County), raised the alarm on the non-payment of salaries for the civil servants and local leaders in Ngora District who had not been paid for the last two months.
“The local leaders in the districts are complaining that they have not been paid for a long period yet they have done their work. The Minister should be in position to explain why the civil servants are languishing without pay,” he said.
He also noted that the pensioners in the district had also not been paid over a period of time.
Mr Kasaija said it is the district local governments to blame for all delays in salary payments.
“Salaries and wages of government workers have the first call on the budget. We can suspend and refuse to pay anything but I must pay salaries and wages of public servants,” Mr Kasaija told legislators yesterday.
Workers Member of Parliament, Hon. Agnes Kunihira, (NRM, Workers’ Representative), noted that there were various regions that had actually not received any money.
“There are 78 districts in which public servants and teachers have not received their salaries over time,” she said.
