Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) has summoned former Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) Executive Director Jennifer Musisi to account for the mysterious disappearance of two weighbridges procured in the 2011/2012 financial year to monitor waste volumes at the Kiteezi landfill.
The missing equipment, flagged in the Auditor General’s report, was vital for tracking the tonnage of solid waste delivered to the site.
However, shortly after procurement, the weighbridges reportedly vanished and were allegedly replaced with non functional alternatives severely compromising KCCA’s ability to enforce waste management controls.
Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago, appearing before the committee, expressed deep concern that the same procurement blunders could repeat themselves as the city now embarks on new equipment acquisitions.
“I’m deeply concerned that history may repeat itself,” Lukwago warned. “We saw two weighbridges disappear under mysterious circumstances in 2011/12, reportedly ending up in Rwanda. We must ensure that the current procurement of tractors and excavators doesn’t fall into similar hands.”
Lukwago, who at the time of the procurement was suspended over abuse of office charges, also criticized the decision to substitute the missing weighbridges with non-operational ones, saying it crippled oversight at the landfill.
The committee, chaired by Busiro East MP Medard Sseggona, has pledged to leave no stone unturned.
“If we have to go international, we will consider involving Interpol to trace the missing equipment, believed to have been transported beyond Uganda’s borders,” said Sseggona.
COSASE has also indicated plans to summon not just Musisi, who was the accounting officer during the procurement, but also former contractors and the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) officials attached to KCCA at the time.
The probe is part of Parliament’s broader push to recover lost public assets and hold former city officials accountable for procurement irregularities that have cost taxpayers dearly.
Jennifer Musisi served as KCCA’s founding Executive Director from 2011 until her resignation in 2018. While her tenure drew global acclaim for urban reforms in Kampala, internal conflicts with political leadership and budgetary constraints eventually led to her exit.
Since stepping down, Musisi has relocated to the United States, where she works as the inaugural City Leader in Residence at Harvard University under the Bloomberg-Harvard City Leadership Initiative.
It remains unclear whether Musisi is currently in the country to face the COSASE summons.
