The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has said it played no role and is not answerable for the extra 5 pallets loaded onto the chartered cargo plane carrying printed currency from Paris, France to Entebbe airport.
Initial reports indicated that the chartered plane landed at Entebbe on April 27 and was cleared by the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) customs department in the presence of Bank of Uganda (BoU) officials, BoU security, aviation security, police and other security agencies.
However, it was reported that instead of the expected 20 currency pallets, the consignment had 25 pallets. According to a statement released by the central bank a week ago, the anomaly was identified during the verification of the consignment. A number of central banks officials were arrested in the aftermath.
It has since been reported that the extra cargo belongs to different individuals and organization including businessman Charles Mbire, United Nations, USAID and Omar Mandela, the proprietor of Café Javas. Police said they were investigation possible printing of extra cash by some BoU officials. The investigation has since been extended to currency centres in Mbale, Kabale and Fort Portal.
CAA director for safety, security and economic regulations Eng Ronny Barongo told a committee of parliament that the clearance for the flight in question was sought by Astral Aviation Services of Kenya indicating that the plane was carrying printed material to Uganda.
Barongo and other CAA officials were appearing before parliament’s Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises Committee (Cosase) to respond to a number of audit queries raised against the authority.
During the engagement, Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda asked CAA what its role was in the procurement process amid reports that the authority’s officials conspired to clear private cargo on the BoU chartered plane.
"Your name has been brought into this because if you look at the press reports, you; Civil Aviation, Bank of Uganda you are being assigned responsibility for what happened. So I would be interested to know what your role was or was not in this particular incident of Bank of Uganda…You see importing currency is no ordinary cargo, even you you may have been alerted that something important is coming. I would be interested in knowing your role or no role in this." Ssemujju said.
Efforts by the CAA director-general Dr Mpango Kakuba to plead with the committee to avoid discussing the matter were futile. He had argued that it is against the subjudice rule to discuss a matter that is being investigated. But his argument was rejected on account that the matter is not yet before court.
He later told the committee that no official of CAA had been summoned for interrogation over the BoU chartered plane. However, he asked the director airports Eng Ayub Sooma to explain issues pertaining to clearance of cargo.
Sooma said that CAA has no role in currency cargo verification and supply chain processes by the central bank since the only requirement is a notification about any shipment that is expected in the country. He added that all currency verifications are done at the central bank.
"In this particular cargo, Bank of Uganda on issues of currency it has a special arrangement. Once the director of currency says that they are going to bring currency, it will be a special mission and all verifications will be done at Bank of Uganda. So when an inbound cargo comes, they will go with their own people of Bank of Uganda. They will go to the airport with their bullion and take whatever they take…Civil Aviation Authority has no role in this transfer incident. Transfer or movement of currency is a special operation." Sooma said.
But Kakuba maintained that CAA does not inspect what the central bank brings into the country.
"What is correct is carrying currency is a special and sensitive operation therefore you don't expect CAA to go there and count pallet by pallet."
Samia-Bugwe North MP Gideon Onyango noted that the different statements from government entities were sending a wrong signal. Onyango said now that extra cargo can be loaded onto a chartered plane, the situation can only get worse when the revived Uganda Airlines resumes operations.
"Police is saying they did a search that means not at the airport but either at the bank or in peoples but all these things they are trying to search for passed through the airport…We need affirmation from the team about the safety of the airport. Ugandans need assurance, is the airport safe? We're all aware we now have our own airline, it’s new, it’s about to begin operating. Now if we are already doubting the safety, will our own airline, we’ll really be safe?" Onyango said.