Come on, Amelia Kyambadde isn’t qualified for the new job By Norbert Mao Jan 23 - 29, 2005
The debate has been raging about the appointment of Mr Adolf Mwesige to the non-existent position of deputy attorney general. Instead of responding in an enlightened way to questions raised, presidential legal assistant Fox Odoi has instead decided to insult all critics, calling them idlers!
But the biggest scandal in the recent appointments may actually be the elevation of Ms Amelia Kyambadde to the position of presidential principal private secretary (PPS). Until now she has been a personal assistant to the President. Being around the President for long is not enough to qualify one for the office of PPS.
I think the President has a fabulous assistant in Kyambadde. But to jump all ladders and make her occupy a position normally reserved for very senior civil servants is bound to raise eyebrows.
APPOINTED: Ms Kyambadde
President Museveni has virtually superimposed an informal state atop the one established by the Constitution, yet it is not for nothing that rules are set. A PPS is at the same rank as a permanent secretary and the previous occupants of the position of PPS have been seasoned civil servants who would ensure that there is presidential compliance with the law.
Mr Martin Orech was a PPS in Obote II before rising to be head of the civil service. Then came Eng. B.K. Kabanda and Ms Hilda Musubira. Those who were not so senior only held the position in an acting capacity. In that category we had Ms Joan Magezi (a long time international civil servant) and MP Francis Mukama (then an undersecretary).
Here is a partial list of the constellation to which Museveni has now cast Kyambadde. Mr Vincent Ssekono (local government), Dr S.P. Kagoda (internal affairs), Mr Martin Odwedo (PM's office), Mr F.X. Lubanga (education), Eng. Kabanda (lands), Mr Ralph Ocan (labour), Musubira (deputy head of the civil service), Mr Alex Mitala (head of civil service), Ambassador J.B. Onen (foreign affairs), Mr Chris Kassami (finance). Can Kyambadde match these heavy hitters?
The reason why a PPS must be a person well grounded in the civil service cannot be overemphasised. The President himself one day told MPs an anecdote about the strict compliance that a PPS must enforce.
The presidential jet was in Paris and the President had to fly off somewhere. He told Musubira to get him on a commercial flight even if it were in economy class. Musubira flatly told him that would be against the regulations. "I am the President and I am directing you to get me on a commercial flight," Museveni told Musubira.
"I can't do that Mr President," Musubira insisted. "But if I must then you have to put your directive in writing stating that you are going against my advice."
A PPS must be able to defend the set rules in all circumstances.
Another reason why a PPS must be a high level civil servant is to vet the correspondence of the President.
During the time I have been in Parliament, I have seen MPs wondering who drafts not only the President's speeches but also his correspondence.
Just recently, MPs got copies of a letter the President wrote complaining about the "nonsense" of "Baganda Absentee Landlords" in Nakasongola! What was even worse is that the President referred to the Land Act 2000! There is no such law on our statute books. Even the substance revealed prejudice. First of all not all the landlords in Nakasongola are Baganda. There may be many from the President's locality who own huge chunks of land in Nakasongola. Furthermore, words like "nonsense" are best left to spoken English or informal notes.
Before that the President had written a long, rambling and ungrammatical letter addressed to the vice president on the subject of graduated tax. In the first paragraph, the President said graduated tax would have to stay. Further down the letter he said it could be suspended! I have rarely seen a worse example of official correspondence. No wonder there is such confusion over graduated tax policy today.
Another example is the President's dress. To attend a king's coronation in military fatigues is inappropriate. Sometimes the President has appeared with winter attire complete with woollen gloves. A serious PPS would advise the President on appropriate attire. A President should not appear like a beekeeper at a coronation.
I will leave it for readers to find other examples of highly unprofessional and embarrassing speeches and letters emanating from the presidential quarters. My basic point is that bad presidential speeches (which even the President occasionally criticises publicly) and letters can only come to the public if the President is ill advised.
We need a PPS who will see that whatever the President affixes his signature to is worthy of his name and does not degrade the office. Currently, those surrounding the President lack the motivation to tell the President when the pink slip is showing.
A President is free to appoint assistants. These are personal staff. The position of PPS is, however, institutional with strong roots in the civil service.
If we do not speak out, Museveni's personal grip like that of an anaconda will paralyse this country. We have looked on while this anaconda has eroded the institutions of state. The elevation of Ms Amelia Kyambadde confirms that Museveni no longer trusts those outside his entourage.
Despotism evolves incrementally. It seeps into the sinews of society in little drops. It is the little lapses on the part of patriots that buttress despots.
A PPS must alert the President to the importance of complying with the law. We cannot afford to have a PPS who only works on the basis of being a member of the "inner circle". It is time to restore professionalism to the group that surrounds our chief of state. We have been embarrassed enough.
© 2005 The Monitor Publications.
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