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This followed the failure of the airline’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Jenifer Bamuturaki to present her academic papers before the committee chaired by Hon. Joel Ssenyonyi on Thursday, 18 August 2022.
The committee is scritinising the Auditor General’s report on Uganda Airlines for the financial year ended 2021.
In his report, the Auditor General cited issues to do with salary disparities, lack of an organizational structure and continued losses registered by the airline.
While the committee conducted its probe, the CEO was requested to bring her curriculum Vitae (CV) and academic qualifications.
The committee sought to compare her qualifications with that of the advertised position of the CEO which required the ideal candidate to have an honours bachelor’s degree in any field and postgraduate training in administration or any other business-related course.
Although Bamuturaki had told the committee that she attained a degree in Social Works and Social Administration (SWASA) at Makerere University in 1994, she said that she had never got her academic transcripts since then.
According to Bamuturaki, she has been to the University three times recently to get her transcript but the university has not yet located it.
When she was asked for her Ordinary Level result slip, she told the committee that she had lost it and was in the process of getting a new one from the Uganda National Examination Board (UNEB).
Bamuturaki said that she only has a letter and a certificate indicating she was awarded a degree. She said she has been using her certificate and for most of her jobs, she was head-hunted.
Ssenyonyi said there is a possibility that the CEO doesn’t have the qualifications adding that it could be the cause of the challenges at the airline.
“We asked how she has been getting jobs and she said she was always headhunted. That is true because even for this recruitment process, money was spent to recruit people but the process was stopped and she was given the job,” he said.
Mawokota South MP, Hon. Yusuf Nsibambi said the committee needs to take time by scrutinizing the CVs and qualifications of the Uganda Airline managers.
He said that the committee is not asking the questions in vain but intends to ensure that the airline is in safe hands.
“When the person in charge of the airline comes up with doubtable and questionable responses, then we are worried on behalf of Ugandans as an accountability committee,” he said.
The committee also tasked Bamuturaki to explain why in 2019 she registered a deed poll to change her name from Musiime Jenifer Bamuturaki to Jenifer Arnold Lenkai.
She told the committee that she simply had a change of mind, and she didn’t complete the process retaining the name, Jenifer Bamuturaki.
Buzaaya County MP, Hon. Martin Muzale said that the fact that the airline’s CEO lacks academic papers could be the reason why she wanted to change her name.
“For a CEO heading a big institution like this, earning a lot of money and you say for the last 28 years you have not got your transcript. Once you pay to UNEB, they give you six days to pick your papers, University is the same. I think we are dealing with a different person and not the CEO of the airline,” Muzale said.
Bamuturaki was also tasked to explain her relationship with Abbavater, a public relations and marketing firm hired to promote Uganda Airlines.
Bamuturaki (3rd R) before Cosase chaired by Ssenyonyi (2nd R)
Ssenyonyi questioned the conflict of interest when it emerged that Bamuturaki was associated with Abbavater before joining the airline.
She said that she went to the same church fellowship as the owner of the company and that’s her only relation to Abbavater and she doesn’t own any shares.
The committee however, said that before joining the airline, Bamuturaki had signed some documents on behalf of Abbavater.
The committee handed Bamuturaki and Bagenda to Parliament police in regards to their dealings in contracting the PR firm, but also over issues of inconsistency in their statements.