Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago will not be paid his salary arrears worth Shs 560 million after Kampala minister Beti Kamya deferred him to court.
In a letter dated January 2 and signed by Minister for Kampala Beti Kamya to Ms Musisi said in part: “The Attorney General’s official interpretation of the legal process that begun in May 2013 and continued up to 21st August 2014 is that the matter of the Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago’s salary arrears and other emoluments that accumulated between December 2013 and May 2016 can only be addressed before the addressed after Court of Appeal and Supreme Court have conclusively determined whether he was lawfully impeached from office or not’
Mr Lukwago said in a December 19 letter, given an end of December 2016 ultimatum to Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) executive director Jenifer Musisi to pay his salary arrears. Before his payments were terminated, Mr Lukwago was entitled to Shs16m as gross salary and Shs2m in allowances before tax.
Mr Lukwago’s woes stem from an impeachment process in his previous term which was quashed by Justice Lydia Mugambe in a March 28 ruling. While the Attorney General has never appealed Justice Mugambe’s ruling, Ms Kamya cites a challenge to Justice Steven Kavuma’s ruling by Mr Lukwago, which she says must be disposed of by a panel of three justices before a decision to pay Mr Lukwago or not is taken.
But in the latest a copy this newspaper has seen, Lukwago’s arrears will be addressed after court determines whether he was lawfully impeached from office or not.
Ms Kamya, in a November said there were “legal strings” preventing Mr Lukwago from getting paid his arrears.
