Businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba has told Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) that government has three ways to resolve his long-standing compensation claim.
He said government should either pay him the balance it owes, negotiate a refund and take back its property, or ask him to stop investing in the disputed properties and take over only what has already been paid for.
“I am ready for a refund if that is what happens,” Basajjabalaba told the committee.
“Government can also ask me to stop investing in those properties, then take over only what has been paid for.”
He made the remarks while appearing before COSASE to answer questions raised in the Auditor General’s report on transactions involving his company, Haba Group of Companies.
Committee members faulted Haba Group officials for giving what they called uncoordinated answers on the transactions flagged in the report.
The company is at the centre of an inquiry into a Shs140 billion facility linked to the Bank of Uganda, which acted as guarantor. Basajjabalaba has not repaid the money, and MPs want to know why.
Asked about the guarantee, Basajjabalaba said the arrangement was not his idea.
“I did not ask for any guarantor during the tendering process. I went to Bank of Uganda to claim my compensation,” he said.
Committee chairperson Muwada Nkunyingi pressed him for his company’s registration details. Basajjabalaba also defended a Supreme Court order at the centre of the dispute, telling MPs it was issued lawfully.
MPs say matter has dragged on for years
Buzaaya County MP Martin Muzaale said he was concerned that Parliament first discussed the matter back in 2011 and that it remained unresolved 15 years later.
The claim has previously cost senior government officials their jobs. One MP accused Basajjabalaba of triggering the resignations of then Attorney General Khiddu Makubuya and then Finance Minister Syda Bbumba, both of whom stepped down over the financial loss the transactions caused government.
Basajjabalaba again pressed government to honour its obligations through the Bank of Uganda so he can hand over the sublease of Nakasero Market. He also confirmed he still holds an interest in the Constitution Square matter.
Nkunyingi ruled that the committee could not make a final decision on the matter until it had gathered findings from the other entities involved in the transactions, among them the Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Attorney General and the Bank of Uganda.
Basajjabalaba maintained that if government had failed to pay him, it should refund him. However, he could not immediately produce documents to support his claim when asked by the committee.
He denied taking Shs140 billion from government and asked the committee to remind government that turning to private businesses for support was not something to take lightly.
“Private enterprises also contribute heavily to the national economy,” he said.
