KAMPALA – The current controversy surrounding the other cargo on the plane carrying the currency for the Bank of Uganda shows that the Central Bank is suffering a confidence crisis, an expert has said.Police is currently investigating how other unnamed cargo ended up on a plane carrying printed currency from Germany to Entebbe amid allegations that some BoU officials could have connived to print more currency for their own purpose.
However, Ms Nkangi, the communications officer to former Prime minister Amama Mbabazi, blames the controversy on poor leadership at the Central Bank.
‘I was amused when I heard the story. Ideally, we should have heard the install story from BOU, but it came in reverse. When it comes to situations like this, you have to think about what the story is and who you want to tell it to. For this story, none of this happened. The story was issued under pressure,” she said.
” They failed to get together and agree on what is going to be said and who would communicate it, at this point, the story becomes more mysterious. At this point, the story is broken, you’ve said a lot of things the wrong way. The only answered question was, some cargo came on a plane that wasn’t supposed to come, the question is, what is it?” She added.
Although Bank of Uganda Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile later issued a statement, saying he had sanctioned the investigation, Ms Nkangi says it was inconclusive and has left the public more confused and guessing.
“Until we have facts, people are going to call this anything and everything. If you don’t want the media to sensationalise anything, give them facts. Honestly, we should have had one voice and one story,” she said on Tuesday morning while appearing on NBS TV.
“As far as I’m concerned, the Anti-Graft unit shouldn’t be talking, the investigation isn’t even yet complete. What are they investigating in the first place? There’s a conflicting narrative that the public trying to solve,” she added.
Ms Nkangi also said that the government has failed to put facts on the table in the investigation and defended the media for inflaming the story.
” I don’t think the public is stupid. In order for the media to inflame the story, the public has to be stupid. The media deals with what is on the table. In this situation, big as it is, I want hard facts. It’s critical for the government to learn how to communicate because this is how the world is moving,” she added.
Kibaale County MP Abbas Agaba, however, defended the central bank, saying the case itself is complicated.
“I have reason to believe (Lt Col Edith) Nakalema and her investigation, the biggest cooperation is Mutebile himself, maybe he is the whistleblower. It’s a good catch for Nakalema and her team. There shouldn’t be formulation in reporting about what happened. In case you have one person talking, you’re fed just one story which might limit the information. Let the music (contradiction) continue, this is good for us. It’s too early to get a credible version, after a month or two, we shall get the truth. There has been a big blow on Bank Of Uganda, but to conclude it now is to say it’s culpable. Let’s give it time for the investigations to continue,” he said.
