As the parliament of Uganda winds up hearing of views of different cultural institutions on the proposed Traditional Institutions and Cultural Leaders Bill, it is emerging that other than concerns over the rights of cultural leaders, funding of the cultural institutions is turning out to be a major issue.
So far, officials from Bunyoro Kitrara Kingdom and Alur Kingdom have strongly demanded that the government should fund all cultural leaders, and not just the king.
The government currently facilitates any king with five million shillings per month, two vehicles, security and education for two of their official children.
The Alur Kingdom proposed that the Government should finance all their chiefs and kingdom cabinet ministers so that they can carry out the kingdom’s duties well.
The Attorney General of Alur Kingdom, Cox Ojok said the benefits to cultural leaders should be extended to people who support the king in his day to day duties.
Eng. Yabezi Kiiza, the Prime Minister of Bunyoro Kingdom said that it is not enough to support the king while the officials who help him carryout his duties are not facilitated to carry out the cultural duties.
The officials argued before the joint committee of Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and that of Social Development that chiefs, ministers and other kingdom officials do most of the work that a cultural institution is supposed to do, including mobilizing people to take part in government programmes.
This is no doubt another avenue to increase public expenditure but the cultural leaders argued that it is justified since they play a big role in community governance and development. Ojok who was responding to a challenge from committee member Peter Nyombi said that Parliament has huge numbers who also overburden taxpayers but they are maintained and well paid.
Many cultural institutions have over the years been plagued with financial challenges due to the fact they don’t collect any revenues and have to depend on donations from people of good will. For example, the Rwenzururu kingdom of Rwenzori is reported to be facing real difficulties in maintaining their king, Iremangoma Charles Wesley Mumbere.
