President Yoweri Museveni has reaffirmed government’s commitment to kick middlemen out of Uganda’s petroleum supply chain and assured citizens that they will soon access fuel at a cheaper price.
This follows introduction of an amendment to the Petroleum Supply (Amendment) Bill, 2023 by Energy Minister Ruth Nankabirwa this week in which government seeks to grant Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC) monopoly to supply imported petroleum products to licensed local oil marketing companies.
In a letter he authored on 25 November 2023 addressed to the ‘Bazzukulu’ (grandchildren), Museveni said his government has already contacted the bulk and refinery suppliers to provide the country with direct access to petroleum products at a cheaper price.
The president, however, blamed officials in the civil service for letting down the country when they (without his knowledge) adopted importation of petroleum products from middlemen Kenya instead of buying directly from the oil producers. The middlemen over-charge local suppliers of fuel products leading to high pump prices.
Bellow is President Yoweri Museveni’s letter:
Fellow Ugandans and, especially, the Bazzukulu.
Greetings.
I have a number of issues to share with you. Let me start with the kuseerwa (being over-charged) for the petroleum products from abroad. When we came into Government, we assumed that the Civil Servants would deal with money, administration, procurement, etc., and we would deal with policy, ideology, strategy, security, etc.
However, in a number of cases, these wonderful People, really let down their country. Take the issue of importation of petroleum products. Uganda imports petroleum products of the magnitude of 2.5billion litres per annum valued at about US$ 2bn.
Without my knowledge, our wonderful People, were buying this huge quantity of petroleum products from middlemen in Kenya. A whole country buying from middlemen in Kenya or anywhere else!! Amazing but true.
Why not buy from the Refineries abroad and transport through Kenya and Tanzania, cutting out the cost created by middlemen? Those involved were not bothered by these issues.
Some few years ago, I got to know this information from whistle-blowers. I handed the matter to Minister Kituttu to handle. About a year ago, I got to know that the matter was never handled. When I studied the issue, I discovered that we lose so much by buying through the middlemen.
A check on one occasion a few months ago, showed that the middlemen were selling us petroleum products at prices as indicated below per tonne:
1. Diesel:
I. Middlemen’s price – $118;
II. Price from bulk suppliers or Refiners -$83;
2. Petrol:
I. Middlemen’s price -$97.5;
II. Bulk suppliers or Refiners’ price- $61.5;
3. Kerosene:
I. Middlemen’s price – $114;
II. Bulk suppliers or Refiners’ price – $79
These are prices when the products have arrived at the East African Ports. You can see the huge loss Uganda has been incurring on account of our wonderful People.
We have now contracted bulk and Refinery suppliers able to give us the lower prices. I have discussed this with H.E Ruto, the President of Kenya and our delegation is now in Dar-es-Salaam, discussing with Her Excellency Samia Suluhu.
However, the internal parasites who have been cheating their country, have launched a social–media and mainstream media campaign against our liberation- resistance plan against okuseerwa (being over-charged), assisted by the ever pro-parasite paper known as Monitor. As usual, we are ready to confront the parasites.
H.E Ruto is handling the Kenyan part. I salute his contribution. In a few years’ time, our Refinery will be up and running.
I can assure the Inland East Africans of competitive petroleum products, free of distributions caused by middlemen. The whole of Uganda, North- Western Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Western Kenya, South Sudan and Eastern DRC, will benefit.
Down with the social-media and mainstream media misinformers.
Signed:
Yoweri K. Museveni
Gen (Rtd)
Ssaabalwanyi
2:08 PM · Nov 5, 2023.