Leader of Opposition in Parliament Joel Ssenyonyi has expressed serious concerns over President Museveni’s appointment of David Kalemera to a high-ranking position to fight graft within Uganda Revenue Authority (URA).
The President recently appointed Kalemira to head the newly created state intelligence and strategic operations unit to fight corruption in the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA).
Ssenyonyi was concerned that Kalemira had previously been convicted of tax fraud and corruption by the High Court of Uganda.
He questioned the rationale behind appointing someone with a criminal record to fight corruption.
He remarked, “Are we setting a thief to catch a thief?” He further substantiated his claims by presenting a court judgment to the parliament. The case, Republic of Uganda versus Kalemira David and others, was adjudicated in the Anti-Corruption Court at Kololo, under criminal case number seven of 2018, where Kalemira, along with co-accused Semanda Ian Paul and Kazigwe Ronald, was convicted of tax fraud.
Ssenyonyi criticized the decision, emphasizing that appointing a convicted individual to combat corruption undermines public trust in the government’s commitment to tackling corruption. To support his argument, Ssenyonyi presented the judgment from the High Court, underscoring that his claims were based on a legal conviction.
He warned that such appointments frustrate Ugandan citizens and question the seriousness of the government’s anti-corruption efforts.
The parliamentary session saw Ssenyonyi calling for the Right Honorable Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa ‘s intervention, urging that such matters be addressed to uphold the integrity and effectiveness of Uganda’s fight against corruption.
The Deputy Speaker referred the matter to the Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanjja , who responded by upholding the president’s decision as the appointing authority.
The State House Revenue Intelligence and Strategic Operations Unit was created in early July to play an oversight role on URA operations and to fight corruption within the tax administration system.
The creation according to the President is to help the government close revenue leakages and boost tax collection. David Kalemera doubles as a Senior Presidential Advisor.
The creation of this anti-corruption unit adds to a litany of statutory and other units created to fight corruption among different government agencies.
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