The Parliamentary Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) has summoned the Central Bank Governor, Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile, to answer queries of loss of property during the closure of seven commercial banks.
The summons follows the failure by the Governor to appear before the Committee on three occasions.
This time, Cosase chairman says his committee will issue a warrant of arrest against Mutebile if he fails to honour the invite.
Munyagwa says the committee has powers to summon any Ugandan apart from the President.
Mutebile was invited to appear before the committee to answer queries of the loss of properties by some individuals during the closure of seven commercial banks.
The banks that were closed between 1993 and 2016 include Teefe Trust Bank, International Credit Bank, Cooperative Bank, Greenland Bank, Global Trust Bank Uganda, National Bank of Commerce and Crane Bank Limited.
The third attempt by the committee to interface with the Governor on Wednesday, 21 August 2019 was futile, and the legislators expressed frustrations, saying that he is stifling their work.
Committee Chairperson, Hon. Mubarak Munyagwa (FDC, Kawempe Division South) issued summons for the Governor to appear on 29 August 2019.
“The Governor has to appear in person. We don’t want his Deputy or a representative,” Munyagwa said.
Hon. Gideon Onyango (Ind., Samia Bugwe County South) said that the committee is interested in knowing what the Bank is planning for those who lost property when the banks were closed.
“Some of them have gone to court and won cases but Bank of Uganda has adamantly refused to listen to them,” said Onyango.
Hon. Violet Akurut Adome (NRM, Katakwi district) said that failure by BOU to appear before the committee denies those who lost property fair hearing and justice.
“We are going to compel the Governor to appear which is at the extreme. We want to believe that next Thursday he will appear so that we resolve this issue which has gone on for several months,” she said.
In February this year, COSASE under the leadership of Hon. Abdu Katuntu (FDC, Bugweri County) concluded the probe on BOU in which the Central Bank was accused of violating financial procedures in the closure of the banks.
Katuntu presented a report on the probe, which among other issues demanded action against culprits, proposed changes in BOU and also noted the inadequate accountability on Shs478 billion BOU invested in Crane Bank Limited before it was sold to DFCU Bank at Shs200 billion in 2016.
Chris Tusabe Karobwa however petitioned the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, saying that the probe ended without him and several others receiving justice.
Kadaga then directed the Committee to conduct proceedings on issues that were not concluded. In a letter dated 26 July 2019, Kadaga wrote to Munyagwa to consider the appeal of Karobwa who alleges that the Central Bank mismanaged issues of the Cooperative Bank in receivership.
While meeting the committee on Wednesday, 21 August 2019, Karobwa said that his attempts to engage BOU for the past 20 years have not been successful.
“In February this year, BOU was directed by the Katuntu Committee to give me a hearing but they openly defied this directive and rudely frustrated my other efforts to meet them,” Tusabe Karobwa said.
