KAMPALA I URN: The opposition Forum for Democratic Change-FDC has accused President Yoweri Museveni of presiding over what it described as a “40-year corruption enterprise,” arguing that recent investigations into former Speaker Anita Among are politically selective rather than a genuine fight against corruption.
Speaking during a media briefing at the party headquarters in Najjanankumbi on Monday, FDC Vice Chairperson Centenary Robert Franco said, “Selective prosecution is not justice. Museveni is not fighting corruption.
He is managing who among the corrupt retains his protection and who does not.” Franco said Among’s wealth accumulation, including hospitals, schools, sports facilities, luxury vehicles, and real estate, had long been publicly known and allegedly endorsed by the President. “He commissioned her Bukedea Teaching Hospital in 2024. He stood beside her as she commissioned facility after facility without asking the source of money,” Centenary said.
The FDC official questioned why the government was now pursuing Among, arguing that the ruling establishment had for decades tolerated corruption. “By prosecuting the Rt. Hon. Anita Among Museveni wants us to believe that the government responsible for forty years of institutionalised corruption has overnight become the biggest fighter of corruption,” Centenary said.
The party cited several projects and scandals it said illustrate systemic corruption, including the Lubowa International Hospital project, where it claimed taxpayers have so far paid over UGX 1.4 trillion to investor Enrica Pinetti despite little visible progress. “Uganda taxpayers have paid more than UGX 1.4 trillion to Pinetti, and nothing is on the ground,” Centenary said.
FDC also pointed to the Atiak Sugar Factory project and alleged irregularities in the procurement of Foot and Mouth Disease vaccines during the 2023/24 financial year. Franco further referenced the Karamoja iron sheets scandal, saying only a few officials implicated in the diversion of relief iron sheets were prosecuted.
“The biggest form of corruption is nepotism. How can you preach against corruption, then you go back home to a cabinet that includes your wife, a military headed by your son, a country informally run by your brother, and a succession plan built around your bloodline,” Centenary said.
The opposition party proposed several reforms, including removing family members from senior government and military positions, restricting supplementary budgets, strengthening oversight of classified expenditure, and granting the Auditor General prosecutorial referral powers. Centenary maintained that the investigation into Among was politically motivated. “Anita Among is not being investigated because Museveni has suddenly discovered a commitment to accountability.
She is being managed out of a Speaker’s position because her continued presence threatens the regime,” he said. He urged Ugandans to use democratic means to fight corruption. “The most powerful anti-corruption tool available to Ugandans is the one they hold in their hands: the power to remove the NRM from government,” Centenary said.
