Katuntu defends Cosase report

The former chairperson of the parliamentary committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (Cosase), Abdu Katuntu has defended the central bank probe report.

The report which has enjoyed its fair share of criticism on social media was compiled by Cosase following investigations into the closure and subsequent sale of Teefe Trust bank, International Credit bank, Greenland bank, Uganda Cooperative bank, National Bank of Commerce, Global Trust bank and Crane bank between 1993 and 2016. 
Cosase members have come under criticism from fellow legislators and the public on grounds that despite unmasking several irregularities, their report falls short of naming the implicated central bank officials and instead offers blanket recommendations. Some legislators have even gone as far as recommending for the investigation of Cosase itself on allegations that they could have been compromised by the implicated. 
 
But Katuntu says they were hampered by limited time, absence of minutes from Bank of Uganda and an attempt by President Museveni to block the investigations. 

Speaking shortly after debate on the report, Katuntu said they had no basis for naming the implicated officials since the central bank failed to avail them minutes that led to the closure of the affected banks.

 

"We had that very debate, do we name or not name? We had it. Some of the members of the committee were very strong on it that we name. Rt Hon speaker, as you read this report and colleagues, you realize that there were no minutes. During the proceedings we asked who attended these meetings, and the answers we were getting was they did not know who attended the meetings. How do you name people when they said they were no minutes, were they sincere? I don’t think so." he said. 

Katuntu also said the committee had no intentions of shielding any officer, saying they were only able to identify Justine Bagyenda, the former executive director supervision Bank of Uganda, director financial markets development coordination, Benedict Sekabira.
 
Katuntu also clarified that his report isn't a judgment but rather findings from the facts presented to the probe. He told parliament that his committee did its best under difficult circumstances, saying that they had to review thousands of documents in four days. Katuntu said his committee did a fine job and has set a precedent.

 

"We have opened a door which was never open, never! Nobody has ever done this. Yesterday,  Rt Hon speaker I met an executive director of one of the commercial banks, he said; 'thank you very much. What you have done for the sector, nobody has ever done it because the commercial banks have been terrorized by the central bank but they had no way, they had no forum to raise their complaints. The bank supervision department was a semi-god and the executive director was a superhuman being.' It is only now that any future committee can summon these guys and go into details." Katuntu added. 

He also revealed that even President Museveni wrote trying to block the probe but parliament turned down his request.

 

"Rt Hon speaker if you hadn’t stood firm, I don’t if I would be preaching to the converted but His Excellency wrote objecting to this inquiry not the public [hearing] but the whole process - public it came later. It took the courage of this institution to say yes sir but the constitution provides like this and if we had failed that day, I don’t think anybody would have looked into the central bank." he added.
 
Parliament will continue debating the bank probe report later today.