The 2023/4 budget proposed by the government has been challenged by the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, Hon. Mathias Mpuuga, who found Shs10 trillion in revenue that might be used to improve service delivery.
In his alternative budget, Mpuuga advocated eliminating tax holidays and exemptions, which his shadow finance minister, Hon. Muwanga Kivumbi, claimed would increase the amount of money available for public services.
The budget’s subject was “Rethinking Uganda’s Economy: A Human Rights Perspective.”
In order to increase efficiency, the 380-page budget also aims to fight a full-scale war on corruption and eliminate permanent public employment in favor of contract work.
In contrast to the government’s Sh22 trillion, Kivumbi said that if everyone paid taxes, there would be Sh32 trillion available for discretionary usage in the budget as opposed to a rising mandatory expenditure.
When he added, “Tax exemptions equal to Shs7.7 trillion; we are saying if we are in government, everyone will pay taxes, just like the poor pay.
He continued by saying that everyone must pay taxes, including those who are wealthy; even if it is Parliament, you will pay from your emoluments; if Parliament paid, we would have Shs100 billion in taxes; the councillors and your drivers also pay taxes.
He claimed that in order to “demonstrate a great feeling of patriotism,” senior military personnel will also pay taxes.
The opposition pledged to reduce spending on security, claiming that their government will be eager to put money towards diplomacy, which Kivumbi claimed to be less expensive.
It is cheaper to support democratic administration in our neighborhood than to wage war, he added, adding that you cannot spend that much money on security.
Mpuuga, for his part, attacked the government’s response to the present, rampant inflation, saying it had chosen a course of action that had instead increased hardship for the poor.
“The country is experiencing structural inflation, and you cannot deploy the kind of response that the government is using; the people are impoverished, and the kind of inflation we are experiencing is not due to too much money being in circulation fighting for too few commodities,” he stated.
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