By Editorial
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has hailed the brilliance of the late Bank of Uganda Governor, Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile despite making him commit some mistakes.
President Museveni said that in determining the best way forward to revive the fortunes of the economy in the early years of the National Resistance Movement government, he usually took advice from Mutebile who was then a director at the Ministry of Finance and later permanent secretary.
He says that he however regrets the decision to privatize Uganda Commercial Bank on advice from the late Mutebile against the advice of Dr. Ezra Suruma, a former Managing Director of the bank.
President Museveni later said that the experience he got after selling the bank to Standard Bank Group of South Africa, made him reject any demands that he privatizes other state-owned banks later.
Mr. Museveni speaking……
In his speech at the first Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile Memorial Lecture in Kampala yesterday which coincided with his birthday, the Head of State said the former BoU governor helped him turn around the economy, which had almost collapsed due to political instability.
Mr. Museveni speaking2……
African banking experts also described the Late Mutebile as a principled economic manager, responsible for the way Uganda has managed to handle the economic crisis over the last two years.
Donald Kaberuka, a Rwandan Economist and former President of the African Development Bank, said by rejecting pressure on subsidies, the Bank of Uganda was going by the principle of short-term suffering to avoid long-term suffering and costly reforms in the future. END
