KAMPALA – Bank of Uganda (BoU) Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile and his deputy Dr. Louis Kasekende are on Wednesday facing lawmakers on the Parliamentary committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) investigating irregularities in the closure of commercial banks.
The two officials are accompanied by a team of top management from the Central Bank and the MP’s inquiry focuses on the mismanagement of closed banks and dealings with external lawyers as unearthed by the Auditor General in his special audit report to Parliament.
Mr Mutebile and Mr Kasekende are supposed to answer queries raised by the Auditor General, Mr John Muwanga, as new evidence indicates that BoU officials wrote off Crane Bank Ltd loans amounting to Shs600b through unclear circumstances.
A confidential special audit report of the Auditor General (AG) has revealed weaknesses in the management of the Central Bank and questioned the governor and his team for the hitches in the closure of at least seven commercial banks. The board chaired by the governor will be required to respond to these queries.
Mr Muwanga queried BoU officials on the flaws in the closure of Teefe Bank (1993), International Credit Bank Ltd (1998), Greenland Bank (1999), The Co-operative Bank (1999), National Bank of Commerce (2012), Global Trust Bank (2014) and the sale of Crane Bank Ltd (CBL) to dfcu (2016). All the former directors of the above closed banks will also be cross-examined by the committee this week.
Pressure was further piled on BoU and dfcu Bank by 400 ex-employees of Crane Bank who have since sought audience with Speaker Rebecca Kadaga to present a petition demanding an investigation into a Purchase of Assets and Assumption of Liabilities (P&A) agreement that was signed between BoU and dfcu Bank without the knowledge of ex-Crane bank staff. The AG also queried this agreement. They are demanding Shs48b in terminal benefits.
