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--- Begin Message ---Article Published on:16th September 2004.
Shs 560m for ‘junk’ truck
By Halima Abdallah
WEEKLY OBSERVERIf the scandalous military equipment purchases were serialised, the latest would be the Tatra 813 VVN truck and crane (low-wheel loader) that are too small and perhaps too old for the work they were meant to perform.
The truck, now parked at the mother unit in Masaka, was meant to load tanks and also transport mortuary coolers to Gulu in northern Uganda where soldiers are battling Lord’s Resistance Army rebels.
A Tatra 813 similar to the one UPDF bought The truck’s bed, however, is reportedly too small to carry the container holding the mortuary coolers.
The coolers were required urgently, according to Lt. Col. Jacob Mussajjawaza, the chief of logistics and engineering, in a report dated June 10, 2004.
“There is an urgent need to utilise the Tatra loader and crane … the purpose here (of this letter) is to request the receiving committee to authorise the usage of the equipment as the process to sign the papers is in process,” Mussajjawaza wrote to the chairman of the receiving committee, Col. Hussein Adda.
Army spokesman Maj. Shaban Bantariza declined to comment on the state of the equipment, saying that it is “classified information”.
“I am not about to discuss military information. I am not as foolish as the person who gave you that classified information. He doesn’t wish you well. If you publish it we will take you to court,” Bantariza said.
According the contract documents available to The Weekly Observer, the UPDF bought the reconditioned equipment for Shs 568,620,000 from Uganda Equipment Limited.
Records at the Registrar of Companies indicate that Uganda Equipment Ltd. was registered on February 7, 2002, with Nicholas Byengoma and Ashraf el Masry as the company’s directors. The company has not been known to deal in military equipment before.
The Tatra 813 truck the company supplied is a model last made in 1982. However, the military inspection team cleared it as being in good mechanical condition and rated it at 70 percent; meaning that it is still repairable.
“This assessment is based on condition of a refurbished old vehicle, but if well-maintained and handled can still do useful work for the next five years,” reads the team’s report.
A UPDF engineering source confirmed the reported condition of the truck but said it could not carry large tanks and containers, but rather smaller equipment such as armoured personnel carriers (APCs).
“The engine is strong, but the bed is too small, the tank is bigger. The army may have to buy another bed,” the source said, speaking on phone from the Masaka Armoured Brigade.
A Czechoslovakian manufacturer developed the Tatra 813 in the 1960s. Production began in 1968, and continued until 1982. The T813 was then superceded by the T815.
Though the Tatra equipment the UPDF imported is quite old, large sums of money were paid for it. One army source claimed the particular Tatra truck was actually made in 1969, although the hand-filled vehicle inspection form dated June 14, 2004 indicates 1982 as the year of manufacture.
Interestingly, while the equipment was supposedly directly imported for the army, it bears ordinary registration plates (UAF 400J and UAF 811J) instead of the official army numbers. The motor vehicle registry records, as at September 13, indicate the equipment as still registered for Uganda Equipment Ltd.
“It would seem the equipment was already in Uganda and somebody was clever enough to dump it on the unsuspecting UPDF,” the army source said.
Uganda Equipment Ltd. delivered the equipment to the UPDF’s mechanical yard at Bombo barracks on May 21, 2004 but with none of the original documents.
And while the final invoice from the supplier indicates value added tax (VAT) levied at the local rate of 17 percent (Shs 96,665,400) on Shs 568,620,000, there is actually no VAT certificate attached – raising some doubt whether the tax was actually paid.
The final invoice is higher than the proforma invoice of Shs 553,410,000; inclusive of Shs 80,410,000 as VAT.
One Dr. S. Elmasry signed the final invoice as corporate president for Uganda Equipment Ltd. Asked to respond to the issues being raised over the cost and viability of the equipment his company supplied, a respondent who picked the official cell phone (077-784204) declined to comment, saying he was wary of possible blackmail.“I need to see your face. I cannot comment about my ‘bedroom’ matters on phone. You can say I have refused to comment. Go ahead and write whatever you think is good for the public to consume. I am not going to let you into my bedroom,” the male voice said, insisting that he was away in Kasese.
Reminded that Defence ministry expenditure is a matter of public concern because it is taxpayers’ money, he still refused to explain his company’s business with the UPDF.
“I know journalists always insist, but I am not going to comment at all,” he said.
The army source, however, insisted that even if the truck was actually made in 1982, the cost should at most not exceed Shs 60 million, including taxes.
In the proforma invoice, the supplier valued the truck at Shs 246,500,000 and the low-loader (with goose neck) at Shs 150 million. Vital spares, including 24 tyres, were valued at Shs 76 million.
“So where did the difference go? It seems there is something wrong with this deal but nobody concerned cares to find out,” the army source alleged.A quick check on the Internet indicates that there are similar reconditioned Tatra 813 trucks available for $10,000 (about Shs 20 million) in Germany. Add 20 percent for spares, taxes, insurance and freight, the cost could probably still be under Shs 200 million after delivery to Kampala.
Some senior UPDF officers who reportedly did not want President Museveni, also commander in chief, to know about the alleged scandal, blocked those who were trying to expose what army sources describe as “another junk equipment scam”.
Some “concerned” UPDF officers claim that they gave the contract documents to Museveni’s son, Maj. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, hoping he would easily pass them on to his father, but apparently nothing happened.
“Maybe Muhoozi did not pass over the documents to the President. Otherwise why didn’t Museveni act or order an inquiry?” the source said.
In 1998, the UPDF was in the negative limelight when the Defence ministry allegedly bought two defective MI-24 helicopters from Belarus. The deal cost taxpayers about Shs 12 billion, but the choppers were generally considered “junk” equipment that did not meet the specifications stated in the original contract documents.
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