Parliament to Verify All Staff Over Alleged Irregular Recruitment

Parliament will next week begin a validation exercise covering all its employees to establish whether they were recruited in accordance with the required procedures, Speaker Jacob Marksons Oboth has said.

The exercise, to be conducted by the Parliamentary Commission with assistance from the Public Service Commission, will cover all staff, including Clerk to Parliament Adolf Mwesige.

“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 follows reports that more than 300 employees were recruited during the 11th Parliament without following the required procedures.

“We have reports that over 300 staff were recruited in the 11th Parliament without following proper procedure. We must weed out those who were illegally recruited,” a member of the Parliamentary Commission said.

The validation is intended to establish whether staff appointments complied with recruitment requirements and identify any irregularities. The allegations of improper recruitment will need to be assessed through the exercise.

Oboth also announced plans to revive the Parliamentary Institute, which will be responsible for training Members of Parliament and technical staff.

“We are going to revive the Parliamentary Institute which will be mandated with training both Members of Parliament and technical staff to enhance professionalism and capacity,” he said.

The proposed revival is intended to strengthen professional development and improve the capacity of legislators and parliamentary staff to perform their duties.

The staff validation exercise is expected to scrutinise recruitment records across the institution, while the planned training programme would focus on improving professionalism and institutional capacity.