Alupo Warns Ministers Against Public Shaming of Officials in Anti-Corruption Drive

What the report says

Vice President Jessica Alupo has urged Ugandan ministers leading anti-corruption campaigns to avoid publicly humiliating local government officials during inspections, saying the drive against graft must respect constitutional rights, due process and the rule of law. Nile Post reports that she made the remarks on Wednesday in Kampala at a national meeting of district chairpersons, council speakers, mayors, service commission leaders, chief administrative officers and town clerks.

The meeting formed part of President Yoweri Museveni’s Kisanja Hakuna Corruption campaign, which aims to strengthen accountability and service delivery in local governments. Alupo praised the Ministry of Local Government for increased oversight and said inspections had sent a strong message against misuse of public resources. At the same time, she said political supervision should not replace the work of constitutional bodies responsible for investigating and prosecuting corruption cases.

She warned that exposing officials to ridicule before investigations are complete could violate the presumption of innocence. Alupo said anti-corruption efforts should be firm, but lawful and credible, and she encouraged leaders to use proper institutional channels to raise concerns and submit proposals.

The vice president also linked corruption to poor service delivery at the local level, citing problems such as delayed funds, weak monitoring, limited equipment and leadership disputes raised by participants. She called for greater transparency in budgets, procurement and project reporting, as well as merit-based recruitment, financial discipline and full implementation of audit recommendations. According to the report, she said local governments remain central because they are the first point of contact between citizens and the state.