Parliament has approved a supplementary budget totalling Shs 8.104 trillion, making it one of the largest supplementary allocations ever passed since the amendment of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) 2015.
The approval came despite strong objections from the Opposition, led by Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda and Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Joel Ssenyonyi.
The heated plenary session—chaired by Speaker Anita Annet Among was dominated by scrutiny of three supplementary schedules submitted by the Ministry of Finance .
Budget Committee Chairperson Patrick Isiagi Opolot informed the House that the supplementary request totals Shs 8.104 trillion drawn from three schedules.
Schedule 1 amounts to Shs 1.652 trillion while Schedule 2, totaling Shs 1.696 trillion, is largely for the Ministry of Works and Transport to fund seven suspended road projects , 11 slow-moving road contracts , nine bridges and the purchase of additional aircraft for Uganda Airlines Schedule 3 accounts for Shs 4.756 trillion most of which is allocated to the Electoral Commission.
Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda, presenting a minority report, rejected the entire supplementary, accusing government of manipulating the figures and violating legal and constitutional guidelines.
He noted that the initial request indicated Shs 6.255 trillion ,which was later altered to Shs 8.104 trillion without explanation. Ssemujju condemned the process, declaring: This supplementary violates the Public Finance Management Act.
Government has turned the national budgeting process into a mere ritual. There is total disregard for the law and blatant abuse of taxpayers’ money.
He further accused State House of wasteful expenditure and criticized government ministries for poor planning saying the increasing reliance on supplementary budgets demonstrates “financial indiscipline at the highest level.”
The Opposition also rejected the Electoral Commission’s multitrillion request. Leader of the Opposition Joel Ssenyonyi expressed concern about the EC’s planned procurement of Biometric Voter Verification Machines.
Ugandans are still skeptical about the Biometric Voter Verification Machines that the Electoral Commission wants to procure,” he said.
The EC has not demonstrated sufficient transparency or readiness, yet government wants to pour trillions into a process whose integrity is already in doubt.”
He warned that the funding could influence electoral processes ahead of the 2026 elections.
Government, however, defended the supplementary through Minister of State for Finance Amos Lugoloobi Musasizi, who argued that the allocations were necessary to keep critical infrastructure projects operational and ensure that national priorities receive adequate funding.
With the approval of the supplementary, Uganda’s national budget for the 2025/2026 financial year now rises to over Shs 80 trillion, marking one of the most significant mid-year budget revisions in recent history and raising fresh questions about fiscal discipline, transparency, and accountability.