Billions Down the Drain: Corruption and Incompetence Rocks The Great URA Heist 15.7 Billions Lost to Dubious Deals
A recent investigative report by TV10 Ganomazima has uncovered shocking details of corruption and incompetence within the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), resulting in a staggering loss of 15,716,832,682 billions of Ugandan shillings in the financial year 2023-2024.
The report exposes a web of deceit and collusion between URA officials and a dubious company, M/S Safaritech Limited, which was allegedly founded by URA insiders with the sole purpose of siphoning off funds through the procurement system.
The investigative team of this publication TV10 Gano Mazima finds out that the company M/S Safaritech Limited, was initially registered in Kenya, and awarded a contract to provide audit consultancy services and related services, including the provision of hardware and software servers for URA.
The contract terms were deliberately designed to facilitate fraud, with Safaritech Limited set to receive a 5% revenue share of the recovered revenue. However, the project failed, resulting in significant revenue losses for the country.
Notably, the report reveals that key officials involved in the corruption deal, including Mutebi Robert, the current IT commissioner at URA, and Mwami Richard, the country, CEO of Safaritech Limited, are close associates and former employees of MTN Uganda. The report suggests that their involvement in the scandal was not merely coincidental.
Furthermore, the investigation found that Safaritech Limited’s addresses have been changing, with the company initially registered in Kenya, then moving to the United Kingdom, and now seemingly operating without a traceable address. Moreover, Richard Mwami, the CEO of Safaritech Limited, does not appear in any records of Kenyan taxpayers.
The TV10 Ganomazima report raises serious concerns about the integrity and accountability of URA officials and highlights the need for urgent action to address the corruption and incompetence that has resulted in significant financial losses for Uganda.
BY wakisafredw@gmail.com
