Members of Parliament sitting on the Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) have raised concerns about the competence of staff hired by the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCCA) to oversee the country’s aviation industry.
This scrutiny follows revelations by the Auditor General that certain staff were employed without meeting minimum qualifications or undergoing interviews.
While chairing the committee, Medard Sseggona (Busiro East), underscored the alarming findings that 79 staff members were appointed to positions without meeting the required qualifications.
Additionally, nine employees were neither confirmed nor terminated after exceeding the maximum 12-month probation period.
Jennifer Etit, Manager of Human Resources at UCAA, defended the Authority, explaining that records are maintained both physically and electronically, with the necessary documentation later retrieved and provided to the committee.
However, Workers MP Charles Bakabulindi challenged this defense, pointing out inconsistencies in UCAA’s explanation.
He noted that many appointments transitioned from internships, casual engagements, and contracts, which supposedly bypassed the need for interviews due to demonstrated job competence.
Bakabulindi further criticized the Authority’s approach of encouraging staff to attain qualifications post-hiring, arguing that such practices indicate a flawed recruitment process.
The MPs also raised concerns over Authority’s practice of hiring staff already on government payroll elsewhere.
This followed reports that UCAA has been hiring staff from other government bodies, contrary to public service policy prohibiting individuals from appearing on multiple payrolls.
Fred Bamwesigye, the UCAA’s Director General, defended the practice, explaining that these seconded staff bring specialized skills and receive top-up allowances based on their original government salaries.
“Actually that used to be a practice sometime back but these individuals and their labor unions petition on several occasion and because we could not have segregated payments for, essentially people carrying the same services with contracts”, said Bamwesigye.
However, lawmakers including Eddie Kwizera (Bukimbiri County) challenged this, arguing that seconded personnel should not be listed on UCAA’s payroll as they are not directly recruited by the authority and cannot be disciplined under its Human Resource policies.
The committee debated whether these staff should be reclassified as contract employees rather than being on the permanent payroll.
Bamwesigye assured the committee of CAA’s willingness to review and potentially adjust its payroll practices in collaboration with labor unions and under parliamentary guidance.
The matter remains under scrutiny as COSASE prepares to finalize its report to Parliament on the issue.
