Constitution

Uganda 1995 Constitution (reviewed 2017)

Table of Contents

CHAPTER 13. INSPECTORATE OF GOVERNMENT

223. Inspectorate of Government

  1. There shall be an Inspectorate of Government.
  2. The Inspectorate of Government shall consist of-
    1. the Inspector-General of Government; and
    2. such number of Deputy Inspectors-General as Parliament may prescribe.
  3. At least one of the persons referred to in clause (2) of this article shall be a person qualified to be appointed a Judge of the High Court.
  4. The Inspector-General of Government and a Deputy Inspector-General shall be appointed by the President with the approval of Parliament and shall not, while holding office, hold any other office of emolument in the public service.
  5. A person shall not be eligible for appointment as Inspector-General of Government or Deputy Inspector-General of Government unless that person-
    1. is a citizen of Uganda; and
    2. is a person of high moral character and proven integrity; and
    3. possesses considerable experience and demonstrated competence and is of high calibre in the conduct of public affairs.
  6. A person shall resign his or her office on appointment as an Inspector-General or a Deputy Inspector-General, if that person is-
    1. a member of Parliament;
    2. a member of a local government council; or
    3. a member of the executive of a political party or organisation.
  7. The Inspector-General of Government and Deputy Inspectors-General shall hold office for a term of four years but shall be eligible for re-appointment only once.
  8. The remuneration and other conditions of service of members of the Inspectorate of Government shall be prescribed by Parliament and the salaries and allowances of members of the Inspectorate shall be charged on the Consolidated Fund.

224. Removal of Inspector-General and Deputy Inspector-General

The Inspector-General or a Deputy Inspector-General may be removed from office by the President on the recommendation of a special tribunal constituted by Parliament only for-

  1. inability to perform the functions of his or her office arising from infirmity of body or mind; or
  2. misconduct, misbehaviour or conduct unbecoming of the holder of the office; or
  3. incompetence.

225. Functions of Inspectorate

  1. The functions of the Inspectorate of Government shall be prescribed by Parliament and shall include the following-
    1. to promote and foster strict adherence to the rule of law and principles of natural justice in administration;
    2. to eliminate and foster the elimination of corruption, abuse of authority and of public office;
    3. to promote fair, efficient and good governance in public offices;
    4. subject to the provisions of this Constitution, to supervise the enforcement of the Leadership Code of Conduct;
    5. to investigate any act, omission, advice, decision or recommendation by a public officer or any other authority to which this article applies, taken, made, given or done in exercise of administrative functions; and
    6. to stimulate public awareness about the values of constitutionalism in general and the activities of its office, in particular, through any media and other means it considers appropriate.
  2. The Inspectorate of Government may investigate any matter referred to in paragraph (e) of clause (1) of this article, on its own initiative or upon complaint made to it by any member of the public, whether or not that person has personally suffered any injustice by reason of that matter.

226. Jurisdiction of Inspectorate

The jurisdiction of the Inspectorate of Government shall cover officers or leaders whether employed in the public service or not, and also such institutions, organisations or enterprises as Parliament may prescribe by law.

227. Independence of Inspectorate

The Inspectorate of Government shall be independent in the performance of its functions and shall not be subject to the direction or control of any person or authority and shall only be responsible to Parliament.

228. Branches of Inspectorate

The Inspectorate of Government may establish branches at district and other administrative levels as it considers fit for the better performance of its functions.

229. Resources of Inspectorate

  1. The Inspectorate of Government shall have an independent budget appropriated by Parliament, and controlled by the Inspectorate.
  2. It shall be the duty of the State to facilitate the employment by the Inspectorate of such adequate and qualified staff as are needed to enable the Inspectorate to perform its functions effectively and efficiently.

230. Special powers of Inspectorate

  1. The Inspectorate of Government shall have power to investigate, cause investigation, arrest, cause arrest, prosecute or cause prosecution in respect of cases involving corruption, abuse of authority or of public office.
  2. The Inspector-General of Government may, during the course of his or her duties or as a consequence of his or her findings, make such orders and give such directions as are necessary and appropriate in the circumstances.
  3. Subject to the provisions of any law, the Inspectorate of Government shall have power to enter and inspect the premises or property of any department of Government, person or of any authority, to call for, examine and where necessary, retain any document or item in connection with the case being investigated, found on the premises; and may, in those premises, carry out any investigation for the purpose of its functions.
  4. The Inspectorate of Government shall, when enforcing the Leadership Code of Conduct, have all the powers conferred on it by this Chapter in addition to any other powers conferred by law.
  5. Subject to this Constitution, Parliament shall enact any law necessary for enabling the Inspectorate of Government to discharge its functions effectively and efficiently and in particular, to ensure that the discharge of those functions is not frustrated by any person or authority.

231. Reports of Inspectorate

  1. The Inspectorate of Government shall submit to Parliament at least once in every six months, a report on the performance of its functions, making such recommendations as it considers necessary and containing such information as Parliament may require.
  2. A copy of the report referred to in clause (1) of this article shall be forwarded by the Inspectorate of Government to the President; and where any matter contained in the report relates to the administration of any local authority, an extract of the portion of the report on the matter shall be forwarded to that local authority.
  3. The Speaker shall lay before Parliament the report submitted under clause (1) of this article within thirty days after it has been submitted, if Parliament is then in session, or, if Parliament is not in session, within thirty days after the commencement of its next following session.
  4. The President or any local authority referred to in clause (2) shall at least once every year cause a report to be submitted to Parliament on actions taken by the President or the local authority on reports submitted to the President or the local authority by the Inspectorate of Government, for the information of Parliament.
  5. Parliament shall discuss expeditiously any reports submitted to it under clause (1).

232. Powers of Parliament regarding Inspectorate

  1. Parliament shall, subject to the provisions of this Constitution, make laws to give effect to the provisions of this Chapter.
  2. Laws made for the purpose of this Chapter may, in particular, provide-
    1. for regulating the procedure for the making of complaints and requests to the Inspectorate of Government and for the exercise of its functions;
    2. for conferring such powers on it and imposing such duties on persons concerned as are necessary to facilitate it in the performance of its functions;
    3. for ensuring accessibility to the services of the Inspectorate by the general public and decentralising the exercise of those functions and where necessary, for enabling the delegation by the Inspectorate of any of those functions to other authorities or persons at district or lower local government levels;
    4. for regulating the functioning of the Inspectorate of Government in relation to other institutions or bodies established under this Constitution or any other law; and
    5. establishing a special court within the judiciary for combating corruption and prescribing the composition and jurisdiction and procedures of the court and appeal from the court.