You Are Incompetent, PAC Tells Agago Chief Administrative Officer

Members of Parliament on the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) have described Fred Lwanga Kizito, the Agago Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) as incompetent and a liability to the tax payer.

On Tuesday, Kizito and other Agago Senior District Officials were grilled for close to four hours by PAC in the Gulu District Council.

The Agago officials were tasked to answer raised by the Office of the Auditor General in the 2015/2016 financial year.

Shortly after beginning to give his response, Mr Kizito was forced to take oath with a Bible after members of PAC said he was a hostile witness.

The CAO’s trouble stems from his failure to account for over 350 million shillings advanced to the district by the central government in the financial year 2015/2016.

According the Auditor General’s report, Kizito paid up to 287.8 million to two companies for work not done.

The report indicates that up to 136. 4 million was paid to Eboa Investments Ltd, a Lira based company and another 151.4 million to Shribaraza Company, a Kampala- based company. The money was meant to drill 16 boreholes.

But a team from the Office of the Auditor General said in its report that after visiting the sites were the boreholes were said to have been drilled, they found none.

The Auditor General also raised concern as to why a total of 116.6 million that was to Agago by the central government was not accounted for.

Of concern to the Auditor General was also missing vouchers for over 41.8 million shilling.

Mr Kizito admitted and apologized for the lack of accountability but offered some explanation. Among them is that the 16 boreholes were drilled and are working. He also said that out of the 116 million unaccounted for, they have recovered 3.6 million and that district staff who had not accounted for the money advanced to them are paying back.

However Reagan Okumu (MP Aswa), who is the chairperson said the committee is not satisfied with the accountability and explanation offered by Kizito.

Okumu described Kizito as incompetent before handing him to CID officers alongside Tonny Okello, the District Procurement Officer, and George Patel Okumu, the Chief Finance Officer (CFO) for questioning.

This is not the first time that Kizito who has so far been transferred to Kaliro has had it rough with PAC. In 2014/2015 financial year, when still CAO of Apac, he faced it rough before PAC.