After being dropped from cabinet in Thursday night’s reshuffle, Agness Nandutu, the outgoing junior minister in charge of Karamoja Affairs, has apologized to Ugandan president Gen Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni.
Nandutu’s sacking was not unexpected given her involvement in the iron sheets scandal.
It should be remembered that while ‘big fish’ like the vice president, speaker of parliament, the prime minister and a number of ministers were cleared and their personal assistants blamed for stealing iron sheets, Nandutu and her senior Mary Goretti Kitutu were not lucky. (Read Details Here and There).
Nandutu, who is also the Bududa District Woman MP, told reporters at Parliament barely a day after she was fired that she was grateful to the president for giving her a chance to serve. Nandutu admitted that she had faced challenges, affecting her performance. Despite those hindrances, Nandutu claimed she had done the best for her country.
“I just want to thank the head of this country for the opportunity he gave me to serve at the highest level in Government as a minister. I am very grateful and I thank him for that opportunity. While many people in the country saw nothing in me, President Museveni saw something in me and appointed me as one of the top 100 important persons in this country and I have done my best to serve this country,” she said.
“I would have served even better but because of the challenges that were there, I did a little but at least I left a mark where I was appointed.”
She then asked Museveni to forgive her of her wrongdoing. Nandutu has sworn to keep supporting Museveni and his ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).
“Where I have gone wrong, I ask the President to forgive me. As I move from the front bench to the backbench, I will still serve this Government diligently. I will serve the NRM Government. I will serve my President in my capacity as the Woman MP for Bududa,” she said.
“As you know, we are many players in this field. It doesn’t mean that when you leave the field and go to the bench, you aren’t part of the team. I am part of the winning team, the NRM team and I will cheer them from behind. I will serve in my capacity at the back bench and I am happy for that.”
Nandutu was one of the ministers Museveni dropped from cabinet on Thursday. While Museveni consoled some of the sacked ministers with jobs as presidential advisors, Nandutu’s name was left out. (See Details Here).
She will now remain an MP and hope that the voters in Bududa return her to Parliament in 2026.
You can see Museveni’s full cabinet list following a reshuffle HERE.
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