More than 300 parliamentary staff are expected to undergo a four-day validation exercise led by the Public Service Commission to establish whether their appointments complied with recruitment procedures, with the process expected to affect committee proceedings.
Parliament is set to begin a validation exercise on Monday to establish whether more than 300 staff members were recruited in accordance with the required procedures.
The exercise will be conducted by officials from the Public Service Commission, led by Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet, Lucy Nakyobe, and will cover staff across various parliamentary departments, including the Office of the Clerk to Parliament.
The exercise follows an announcement by Speaker of Parliament Jacob Marksons Oboth during Thursday’s sitting, confirming plans to scrutinise the recruitment records of all parliamentary employees, including Clerk to Parliament Adolf Mwesigwe.
“Starting next week, every employee of Parliament will undergo validation. Everyone from the Clerk to Parliament will speak to their documents and how they were recruited,” Oboth said.
The exercise is intended to establish whether staff appointments complied with recruitment requirements and identify any irregularities. Allegations of improper recruitment are yet to be established and will need to be assessed through the validation process.
According to a leaked schedule, the four-day exercise will begin with staff from the Office of the Speaker, followed by those from the Office of the Deputy Speaker, Thomas Tayebwa, the Office of the Clerk to Parliament, the Leader of Government Business, the Leader of the Opposition, the Communications Secretariat, the Communications and Public Affairs Department, and the Corporate Planning and Strategy Department.
On Tuesday, the exercise is scheduled to cover the Finance, Human Resource and Administration, and Transport and Logistics departments.
The validation exercise is expected to conclude on Thursday with staff from the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms, clerks and the Parliamentary Budget Office.
Sources said staff are expected to present their appointment letters, parliamentary identification cards, national identity cards, original academic documents, and certificates for Ordinary Level, Advanced Level, university education and relevant professional qualifications.
The exercise is expected to affect parliamentary business, with sources indicating that some committee proceedings may be shifted to afternoon sessions to accommodate the validation process.