KAMPALA — President Yoweri Museveni has endorsed the political ambitions of his former Principal Private Secretary Molly Kamukama, appointing her minister of State for Economic monitoring.
A move which is believed will bolster her ambitions of becoming Woman Member of Parliament for newly-created Kazo District.
It is expected that a ministerial position will help bolster her ambitions as well as seal support for the ruling NRM party in the area.
Mr Museveni is known to drop ministers that don’t hold constituencies.
Kamukama assumed the position of PPS in November 2016 and served a three-year contract before being picked to become minister of State in a mini reshuffle which the President announced in December last year.
While swearing in the minsters on Monday January 13, President Museveni noted that he had carefully studied the people he chose to make sure that they would help in fight corruption which he said is a betrayal of the trust of Ugandans and “God”.
“I have picked these young ministers with 6 considerations. I need people to help me fight corruption which is a betrayal of the trust of Ugandans. I urge you the new ministers to shun this vice,” Mr Museveni said, adding: “You may think that no one is seeing you but God is watching.
Mr Museveni told a gathering of old ministers, the new ministers as well as their families that attended the swearing in ceremenoy at State House Entebbe that he made it a point to appoint young ministers to join the older ones in order to address the concerns of the youth population in the country.
Mr Museveni appealed to the new ministers to be pro-people and work to address concerns of the masses as is the agenda of the NRM party.
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the swearing in at Entebbe, Mrs. Kamukama expressed enthusiasm to serve in her new position. She noted that her background in public service and her recent deployment working with the President gives her an added advantage in the new role.
“In this new position, I will work closely with my fellow Minister to check the 5 pillars of our economy, citing challenges that need to be addressed and making recommendations to the President on how to rectify issues that may arise,” Mrs. Kamukama stated.
Mrs. Kamukama started out as a Public Servant in the Electoral Commission where she rose through the ranks to a senior officer before moving to International Agencies.
She later returned to Uganda and was appointed as a Political Assistant to President Museveni.
He later recommended her to the Public Service Commission to serve as a Permanent Secretary and underwent vetting for the role which she passed and was deployed to the president’s office as a Principal Private Secretary, an office she has held for the last 3 years.
“Last month, I was recommended to the Parliament of Uganda by HE The President of Uganda as a State Minister for Economic Monitoring in the Office of the President and successfully passed the vetting exercise,” she added.
The five sectors of the economy that the President has talked about consistently are; ICT, Services, Industry, Agriculture and Oil& Gas as the key triggers which once addressed will catapult the economy to middle income status that has been the aspiration of the Country and is enshrined in the NDP3.
