The Public Accounts Committee (Central Government) has faulted the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) for spending Shs41.6 billion on activities outside their approved work plans without evidence of authorisation from the Ministry of Finance.
The committee said the expenditure breached public financial management rules, which require government entities to follow approved budgets and obtain the necessary authorisation before redirecting funds to other activities.
The findings are contained in the committee’s report on the Auditor General’s audit for the financial year ended December 2025.
The committee, chaired by Kassanda North MP Patrick Nsamba, said the two institutions spent money on activities that had not been approved by Parliament, raising questions about how public funds are planned, allocated and used.
“The two entities applied a combined Shs41.6 billion to items that Parliament had not appropriated, without evidence of the Minister’s authorisation,” Nsamba said.
The Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs accounted for Shs40.7 billion of the expenditure, while the ODPP spent Shs900 million on constructing Resident State Attorney offices in Katakwi and Yumbe districts outside its approved work plan.
The committee rejected the justification that savings from other budget items could be redirected to finance unplanned activities without following the required procedures.
“Savings on a budget line do not confer authority to spend on activities outside the approved work plan,” Nsamba said.
According to the report, a substantial portion of the money was spent on court awards and compensation arising from legal claims against the government.
However, the committee maintained that such expenditure must still comply with public finance management requirements.
The findings come amid growing pressure on government institutions to account for public spending, particularly where money is redirected from approved activities without clear evidence that the required procedures were followed.
The committee also raised concerns about staffing shortages at the ODPP, saying the institution had filled only 600 of its 1,704 approved positions.
The report stated that 399 prosecutors were serving 149 field stations, leaving the institution struggling to manage its workload.
Of the 40,501 new cases received, only 23,184 were committed for trial in the High Court, according to the committee. The figures point to the pressure facing prosecutors as they handle criminal cases across the country.
The committee also questioned the procurement of works worth Shs457.68 million for the construction of the Yumbe office outside the electronic government procurement system, which is intended to improve transparency and accountability in public procurement.
Beyond staffing and procurement, the report raised concerns about the Prosecution Case Management Information System (PROCAMIS), which has reportedly malfunctioned despite expenditure of Shs42 billion since 2017.
The digital system was intended to support the management of prosecution cases, but the committee questioned why the investment had not delivered the expected results.
Nsamba said the ODPP paid Shs2.95 billion to M/s Graphics Systems for maintenance and support of the system during the 2024/2025 financial year, yet key contractual obligations remained unfulfilled.
These included integrating the system with other criminal justice institutions and establishing an off-site disaster recovery facility to protect data and support the restoration of services in the event of a system failure.
“Shillings 2.95 billion was paid under a contract whose two principal deliverables were not provided and the liability clause was not invoked against the provider,” Nsamba said.
The committee recommended that the ODPP enforce the contract’s liability provisions, recover any funds found to have been improperly paid, establish disaster recovery arrangements and conduct an audit of the system.
It also raised concern over infrastructure in Arua and Lira that had remained idle since November 2022, questioning the value of public investments that were not being put to use.
The report further highlighted the financial risks arising from lawsuits against government institutions. Nsamba said the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs had reported contingent liabilities of Shs3.492 trillion, largely linked to legal claims.
The committee called for stronger financial accountability, improved staffing at the ODPP, functional digital prosecution systems and tighter oversight of public expenditure.
