By David Kibirige
Jan 11, 2004
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KAMPALA - Several army paymasters have fled with close to six billion shillings over a period of time. From 1997 to date, more than twenty paymasters have either disappeared or died under unclear circumstances � and with them billions of shillings. Cases documented by Sunday Monitor show that paymasters have disappeared with 5.6 billion shillings. There are also cases where paymasters have been colluding with senior army officers to inflate the nominal payrolls. This has cost the army more than 100 billion shillings over a period of ten years. The most prominent case of a paymaster vanishing with soldiers money is that of Capt. David Byakutaga who fled with 1.6 billion shillings meant for salaries of soldiers operating under Operation safe Haven then based in the Democratic Republic of Congo in May 2000. Paymasters are at the centre of a scandal involving �ghost soldiers� in which billions of shillings has been lost. Last year President Yoweri Museveni constituted a probe team which has unearthed shocking details of how the army has been losing money through paying non existent soldiers commonly known as ghosts in the army. Sixty-eight senior officers and 103 paymasters have been lined to face the general court martial chaired by Lt. Gen. Elly Tumwine. The Minister of Defence Amama Mbabazi chaired the first probe committee while Lt. Gen. David Tinyefuza is chairing another one, which has carried out more in-depth probe into the scam. In 1997 President Yoweri Museveni revealed that Shs 400 million was disappearing every month through payment of �ghost soldiers� in UPDF�s 4th Division. The then paymaster, Lt. Jerald Osere, reportedly �committed suicide� as investigations opened on his handling of army salaries. However, Osere�s relatives said he had been murdered to destroy evidence against some big army shots. Before �committing suicide� in his Gulu flat where he lived alone, Osere had been to then Mbuya Army Headquarters to complain that one of his bosses was diverting money meant for salaries. |
� 2003 The Monitor Publications
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