By Our Reporter
President Yoweri Museveni has announced that the government will scrap early retirement provisions for public servants whose salaries have been enhanced. This measure aims to ensure that staff benefiting from salary enhancements serve the state for longer periods. The President expressed his dismay upon learning that some scientists, who had received significant salary enhancements, were now rushing to apply for early retirement to benefit from higher retirement packages.
“The law should be clear—there should be no early retirement for those who have received an enhanced package. With an enhanced package, you should serve your term. They will not get that package if they retire early. I'm going to issue an executive order,” Museveni stated on Thursday during a meeting with Permanent Secretaries (PSs) at State House Entebbe.
The PSs were accompanied by Lucy Nakyobe, the Head of Public Service and Secretary to Cabinet.
The President commended the PSs for aligning with the National Resistance Movement (NRM)’s vision of socio-economic transformation. He also pledged his continued support for the PSs in executing their supervisory roles, which include policy implementation and overseeing public funds in their respective ministries.
The move follows recent salary enhancements, particularly for scientists. Since these changes, many qualifying for early retirement have applied to leave the public service. In August, New Vision reported that at least 5,000 teachers, most of them science teachers, had applied for early retirement since the start of the year.
Allowing these teachers to retire early would worsen the already critical staffing shortages in government schools. The government currently employs about 180,000 teachers across primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions but faces a shortfall of 98,000 teachers.
A report on Universal Primary Education released last year highlighted that in some classrooms, one teacher was serving over 100 pupils, while the recommended ratio is one teacher for every 45 pupils. Districts such as Masaka, Rwampara, Kassanda, Bukwo, and Sheema, as well as cities like Masaka and Sheema Municipality, were identified as the worst hit by this shortage.
Some local governments attribute the early retirement applications to fears that the government might eventually rescind the salary enhancements, reverting staff to old salary scales due to funding challenges.
The government believes that some scientists whose salaries have been enhanced are seeking to retire early to secure improved pension benefits and then move into the private sector or start their own enterprises. When one retires after a salary increase, their pension is calculated based on their final salary. For example, a secondary school science teacher at the rank of Senior Education Officer, previously earning UGX 1.7 million, would have their pension calculated on their new salary of UGX 4.2 million. If they retire at 45, they would receive a substantial monthly pension for the rest of their lives while continuing to work in private schools.
Early retirement provisions
Early retirement is provided for under the Public Service Standing Orders of 2021. Public officers can retire early under the Pensions Act, but only if they meet certain conditions:
Applications for early retirement must be submitted to the pensions authority through the responsible officer, who processes the benefits once permission is granted.
PSs pledge support in fight against corruption
During the meeting, President Museveni also warned the PSs about the dangers of corruption.
“You are in charge of government money, personnel, and procurement. You have the lead role in fighting corruption,” he said.
Ramathan Ggoobi, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, who spoke on behalf of the PSs, pledged their commitment to supporting the President’s anti-corruption efforts.
“One of the major issues is corruption in the procurement system, which causes the government to lose huge sums of money. We recommend reforms for a more efficient procurement process to save public funds,” Ggoobi stated, according to a release from the Presidential Press Unit.
Categories already enhanced
Through a phased salary enhancement programme, the government has raised salaries for several public servant categories, including judicial officers, legal officers, and scientists. In the education sector, university staff, technical vocational education and training (TVET) tutors, and science teachers—excluding headteachers and deputies—have also received salary boosts.
For instance, a Senior Education Officer’s salary increased from UGX 1.7 million to UGX 4.2 million, while a Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) now earns UGX 20 million, up from UGX 13.8 million. Salaries for various medical professionals and non-medical scientists in the public service have also been enhanced.
In addition, aviation staff under Soroti Flying School, Presidential Crew, and police pilots are among those who have benefitted from the salary enhancement programme.
Torch Media Africa
