The Government of Uganda has fired Five senior managers and The Chief Executive Officer of Uganda National Airline Corporation. Mr. Waiswa Bageya, the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Works and Transport has also asked the board headed by Mr. Pereza Ahabwe to resign.
This puts an end to the impasse that saw Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala suspend The CEO- Cornwell Muleya and 12 other top officials to pave way for investigations into allegations of financial mismanagement, collusion, and nepotism in staff recruitment among other issues.
Those Fired Include;
- Cornwell Muleya – CEO
- Roger Wamara – Commercial Director
- Moses Wangalwa – Procurement Manager
- Tom Gidudu – Procurement Officer
- Andrew Tumusiime – Senior Administration Manager
- Joseph Sebowa – Human Resource Manager
The following were retained and asked to report back to duty;
- Paul Turacayisenga – Finance Director
- Deo Nyanzi – Sales & Marketing Manager
- Harvey Kalama – Ground Operations Manager
- Bruno Oringi – Safety Manager
- Juliet Otage Odur – Cabin Crew Training Manager
- Alex Kakooza – First Officer
- Kenneth Kiyemba – First Officer
Genesis:
On April 21, 2021, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni ordered the Works and Transport Minister, Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala to suspend Muleya and 12 other top officials.
As a result, an interim board of directors chaired by Mr. Bageya was put in place to oversee the airline and after nine months on suspension, Mr. Bageya says the interim board has decided to terminate the CEO’s contract and those of five other officials
Status of Airline according to the Auditor General’s Findings:
Mr. John Muwanga the Auditor General noted in his latest report that Uganda Airlines is losing billions of shillings due to the delayed conclusions of the suspension cases. Muwanga noted that the suspended staff remained on the same terms of the contract and those acting in their positions “receive extra pay implying double payment for the same position and as a consequence, the company has lost over 2.3 Billion Shillings from May 2021 to date.
Finance Ministry’s take:
Finance Minister, Matia Kasaija said In October 2021, that the shareholders had made a mistake of appointing an incompetent board of directors and managers. He noted that the two rocky years of the National carrier had largely been a result of the appointment of the board of directors and managers without relevant experience in the aviation industry. Kasaija however said that the shareholders would resolve the corporate governance and management issues by mid-2022.
It’s imperative to note that the government revived the National carrier in 2019 to lower transport costs, boost tourism and business opportunities for Ugandans.
Registered as Uganda National Airlines Company Ltd (UNACL), the airline is under the joint supervision of the ministries of works and finance, which own 50 percent shares each. It currently has over 300 staff including top managers who are mostly in acting positions.
Unanswered Questions::
Will the fired staff seek legal redress? And dies government have enough evidence to pin them down?
Will the recalled senior managers try to put things in order? Or will it be a hostile environment as the recalled managers take back their positions?
Will a substantive Board be appointed soon?
What exactly is going on at Uganda Airlines? Why are the Airbuses on ground? Why hasn’t self handling taken off?
Follow The Aviator for answers to these questions. We are also yet to obtain a full report from Mr. Bageya’s team.
