Gov’t workers quizzed over leaked document

Some employees from the Ministry of Public Service and Labour (MIFOTRA) were yesterday quizzed over a list of civil servants published by The New Times. The New Times obtained the list that contains 56 names of civil servants who were suspended last week for failing to declare their assets.

Thursday, December 31, 2009

Some employees from the Ministry of Public Service and Labour (MIFOTRA) were yesterday quizzed over a list of civil servants published by The New Times.

The New Times obtained the list that contains 56 names of civil servants who were suspended last week for failing to declare their assets.

"We are being questioned and the ministry wants to find out who gave this list to The New Times,” a source from the ministry said.

The Office of the Ombudsman reportedly called MIFOTRA to find out how the list ended up in the newspaper.

Those suspended were from the judiciary, parliament, military, diplomatic missions and different ministries as well as local government structures.

It is reported that a good number of Police and RDF officers appearing on the list were on foreign missions at the time of declaring their assets. 

Jeanne Mwisaneza, the Director of the Wealth Declarations Department yesterday said that the Ombudsman was not aware that some senior officers had not been in the country.

"We followed the list given to us by the police. They gave us the list and said these are the people who must declare,” Mwisaneza explained.

Several civil servants from the Western Province who appeared on the list told The New Times yesterday that they never received declaration forms in time.

But another source in the same province said "these suspended employees know the law very well and they should have picked the forms from Ombudsman by themselves”.

Ends