UGANDA (eTN) – Pressure is growing on the Uganda Ministry of Tourism to appoint boards for various institutions under the auspices of the ministry, in particular for the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), now that the albeit hugely controversial probe report by a special commission of enquiry has been presented to the Minister. While in this case it remains uncertain what, if any, steps are being taken over the few credible scraps of facts within the report, the overdue appointment of a new board is now a matter of urgency and growing national concern, seeing how the once mighty UWA has been dismembered and uprooted. The current minister also came unexpectedly and undeservedly into the cross hairs of commission Chairman Kanyeihamba.
No comments were proferred by regular sources within the ministry, or those close to the ministry, as they themselves appear baffled over the extraordinary period of time it seems to be taking to make relevant appointments. The last chairman, a personal friend of the former Tourism Minister, was subsequently sacked by a court order for being patently unqualified to hold the position as he failed to meet the criteria for appointment, in spite of being a medical doctor, as were several of the board appointments made by the same minister, leaving a glaring gap on supervisory level of the Uganda Wildlife Authority.
That said, it is understood, that the terms of office of the boards of the Uganda Wildlife Education Center in Entebbe and of the Uganda Tourism Board have also been expired for a while now, raising yet more questions of just what it will take to fill these statutory appointments and make the respective organizations fully operational on all levels.
In a related development, it was also established that the Hotel and Tourism Training Institute in Jinja still lacks an enabling law since the rushed transfer of the institute some years ago from the Ministry of Education and Sports to the Ministry of Tourism, leaving that institution also without a board. Questions galore and yet few answers so far.
WHAT TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS ARTICLE:
- The last chairman, a personal friend of the former Tourism Minister, was subsequently sacked by a court order for being patently unqualified to hold the position as he failed to meet the criteria for appointment, in spite of being a medical doctor, as were several of the board appointments made by the same minister, leaving a glaring gap on supervisory level of the Uganda Wildlife Authority.
- That said, it is understood, that the terms of office of the boards of the Uganda Wildlife Education Center in Entebbe and of the Uganda Tourism Board have also been expired for a while now, raising yet more questions of just what it will take to fill these statutory appointments and make the respective organizations fully operational on all levels.
- In a related development, it was also established that the Hotel and Tourism Training Institute in Jinja still lacks an enabling law since the rushed transfer of the institute some years ago from the Ministry of Education and Sports to the Ministry of Tourism, leaving that institution also without a board.
