The deputy Inspector General of Government (IGG), Anne Twinomugisha Muhairwe, has ordered Masaka District’s human resource officer, Kityo Mugagga, to refund Shs 25,329,000 that was irregularly paid to a deceased pensioner.
An investigation by the IGG’s Masaka regional office found that Mugagga continued to process pension payments for Joseph Henry Kyeyune, a former civil servant who died in 2015.
Despite knowing of the death, Mugagga altered Kyeyune’s records, including his date of birth, in an attempt to secure additional benefits. The pension payments continued for over five years, with the money being withdrawn from Kyeyune’s Centenary bank account by his family members.
Kyeyune, who was a senior technician with the East African Posts and Telegraph, was placed under the Masaka District Local Government payroll in 2015. A requirement for pensioners to submit annual “life certificates” to prove they are alive was ignored by Mugagga.
Kyeyune was finally removed from the payroll in February 2022, but not before a total of Shs 32,472,989 had been irregularly paid out. At the time of the IGG’s inspection, a balance of Shs 7,143,989 remained in the bank, leaving Shs 25,329,000 to be refunded.
The IGG’s office ruled that Mugagga’s actions were a breach of the Pensions Act and found him guilty of abuse of office, gross negligence, and failure to perform his duties.
In addition to refunding the money, Mugagga is scheduled to appear before the Masaka District Service Commission for disciplinary action. This case highlights the persistent problem of “ghost pensioners” in Uganda.
In 2012, the government temporarily suspended the entire scheme after detecting losses exceeding Shs 155 billion to non-existent pensioners in the ministry of Public Service.
That same year, police uncovered an additional Shs 10 billion paid to over 3,000 ghost beneficiaries. Furthermore, a 2016 report highlighted another Shs 23 billion lost to ghost pensioners, while Auditor General reports for 2014 and 2015 showed monthly leakages of Shs 12.7 billion and Shs 11 billion, respectively.
In 2024, the Auditor General intensified verification exercises, including physical headcounts, as the IGG investigated over 24,000 suspected cases of ghost pensions. The government had earlier integrated the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) with the Human Capital Management System (HCMS) under a 2018 MoU to curb fraud.
However, the 2024 pension audit revealed persistent weaknesses, noting that records of deceased civil servants are not automatically updated.
“The failure to promptly update records of deceased civil servants may lead to delayed deletion and continued salary/pension payments. This could result in a financial loss to the government,” the Auditor General warned, urging stronger integration between NIRA and HCMS.
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