The chairperson of the National Standards Council, Charles Musekuura has with immediate effect been fired from office by the Trade Minister, Francis Mwebesa.
Musekuura has been directed to hand over his office to Eng James Kalibbala, a council member, who has been named acting chairman.
Eng Kalibbala’s role as acting chairman is temporary, and the appointment will continue until the Cabinet decides on a substantive office holder.
The Trade Minister’s directive to the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) Acting Executive Director, Mr. Daniel Nangalama, is to ensure an immediate handover and takeover of responsibilities.
No specific reasons were provided for the termination of Musekuura’s services in the official letter. The Trade Minister cited the powers granted to him by the Constitution for the decision. However, the relevant provision of the Constitution was not specified.
In response to his termination, Musekuura questioned the legality of the move, as the law does not provide for the position of an acting chairperson of the Council. He argued that the UNBS Act only outlines the position of the chairperson, and dismissal procedures are not outlined.
This development follows the suspension of the then UNBS Executive Director, Livingstone Ebiru, who claimed to have paid Shs100m to Council Chairman, Musekuura, through an intermediary, to retain his job.
Despite retracting the claim, Ebiru faced investigations by the government Ombudsman and appeared in court, where a case is pending against him.
UNBS was established as a statutory standards regulator by an Act of Parliament and domiciled under the Trade ministry. It became operational in 1989.
Its mandates include enforcing standards to protect public health and safety and the environment against dangerous and substandard products; ensuring fairness in trade and precision in industry and strengthening Uganda’s economy through assured product quality.
