News coming in show that the sh42 billion fuel reimbursement that Members of Parliament (MPs) have been requesting for the last three years has finally been authorized and released by the government, giving MPs cause for celebration.
This reimbursement will be credited to MPs’ bank accounts this week, making up for the higher fuel costs they have been subjected to since the 11th Parliament convened in May 2021.
The mileage allowance that each Member of Parliament receives is reported to be between sh75 million and sh90 million. However, this price fluctuates depending on how far each constituency is from Kampala.
The MP from the Zombo district will receive the most sum—roughly sh90 million. Monthly mileage payments for Members of Parliament typically range from sh15 million to sh40 million according to credible information from Parliament corridors.
Members of larger constituencies and special interest groups, such as national youth MPs, workers’ MPs, and representatives of individuals with disabilities, are given additional mileage allowances.
The supposition behind these allowances is that Members of Parliament must travel to and from their constituencies on a weekly basis although most of them reside in the central region near Parliament.
In response to the MPs’ complaints regarding the out-of-date mileage allowance rates—which were based on the old pump price of sh3,600 per litre set during the 10th Parliament—the Parliamentary Commission approved the fuel reimbursement last year.
Fuel costs have increased to more than sh5,000 per litre since then. Diesel rates as of this week varied from sh4,500 to sh4,980 per litre, while petrol prices are between sh5,100 and sh5,430. With the President’s consent, the commission decided to modify the mileage limits in accordance with current fuel prices.
MPs will get their fuel arrears and other allowances this week, a well-placed source at Parliament revealed. The Director of Communication and Public Affairs for Parliament Chris Obore confirmed the arrears and said payments would be made as soon as the finance ministry receives the money. In response to MPs’ grievances regarding postponed payments, Obore advised them to notify the media as soon as they have their monies.
Meanwhile Parliament has already reimbursed MPs for their fuel costs. Fuel rebates of more than sh100 million were given to every member of the 9th Parliament in 2016. It’s unclear if MPs who drive official government cars and use gasoline (like ministers) will also be eligible for this reimbursement.
According to the source, the allowances of each Member of Parliament were to have been paid out this month together with their wages. However, as of last Friday, only salaries had been paid out of a budget deficit of more than sh80 billion in the first quarter of the 2023–2024 fiscal year; allowances were still outstanding. Parliament was limited in its ability to remedy this deficiency due to the finance ministry’s limited disbursements.
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Additionally, Obore restated his demand that Members of Parliament notify the press about payment delays as well as the time and amount of money they receive. All this comes at a time when Parliament is facing backlash, criticism and protests from the public over increased corruption and wastage of taxpayers’ money.
