The Director General of Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), Eng. Fred Bamwesigye has admitted that the discovery of 82 staff without requisite academic documents sent shockwaves into the institution, warning other institutions not to rely on documents submitted by staff or prospective candidates, but rather confirm the authenticity of those documents via the education institutions.
He made the remarks while appearing before the Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE), during the consideration of the December 2024 Auditor General’s report.
Bamwesigye said that Civil Aviation was able to discover the forgeries after verifying these documents with the education institutions they were purported to have come from.
This was in response to questions raised by Busiro East mp Medard Sseggona who wondered how the Authority failed to detect that among the staff implicated in the forgeries were top ranking officials at levels of Principals, and not merely entry level clerks.
Bamwesigye blamed the delays to sniff out the officials with questionable qualifications on the practices in aviation industry where the players in the sector are required to have certain qualifications that don’t follow the requirements like Masters, PhDs like is the case in other sectors.
The officials from Civil Aviation Authority also informed the Committee that during the payroll audit, cases of negligence were also found out especially amongst two people, one was sent abroad to work to do a course, but disappeared in Canada and the Authority failed to trace him and throughout that time, he was receiving his salary.
The committee chairperson Sseggona asked what charge would be imposed on the disappearing cases to which Bamwesigye.
