Written By | BK Mugizi
Sheema district CAO, Hajj Nsubuga Isa Hood
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SHEEMA
Sheema District Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), Nsubuga Hood, has warned public servants against absenteeism, poor performance and compromising service delivery, saying accountability and results must take centre stage.
Nsubuga made the remarks during an extended Technical Planning Committee (TPC) meeting at the district headquarters yesterday, where he shared key messages from a recent government engagement at Kyankwanzi.
He urged public servants to change their mindset, work harder and ensure that government programmes translate into tangible services for citizens.
"What you see as abnormal is now normal. This means that you must work hard to ensure results are achieved and do thorough work in order to implement government programmes," Nsubuga said.
He said the Deputy Head of Public Service had delivered a similar message during the Kyankwanzi engagement.
"Last week we were in Kyankwanzi, and the Deputy Head of Public Service told us that what is taking place is the new normal. It is going on and it is going to continue," he said.
Why are people not being served?
Nsubuga questioned why some members of the public continue to struggle to access government services despite investments in programmes such as the Parish Development Model (PDM) and extension services.
"PDM has come, extension services are there. Why are members of the public not being served?" he asked.
He also questioned the performance of Parish Chiefs, noting that government had invested in strengthening the parish-level workforce.
Nsubuga said public servants must ensure that government programmes produce tangible benefits for citizens.
He cautioned staff against compromising the quality of infrastructure and services delivered to the public.
"Whatever we do, we should not compromise quality in terms of infrastructure and the services we give to our clients," he said.
Latecomers warned
Nsubuga expressed concern over staff attendance, saying some employees report for duty as late as 10:00am.
He directed that the attendance register must clearly reflect the official reporting time of 8:30am and said attendance would be regularly monitored.
"A line must be drawn at 8:30am, and we shall pay salary according to the number of days attended. We must carry out a monthly check, and this applies to all lower local governments," he said.
He tasked heads of departments, town clerks and persons in charge of institutions with taking full responsibility for staff under their supervision.
Nsubuga also warned against employees who sign the attendance register and then leave their duty stations or fail to perform their responsibilities.
"There is a lot of cover-up here," he said.
He questioned why supervisors allow non-performing employees to continue receiving salaries.
"How can someone come to the office and sit there for three hours without being able to serve a client?" he asked.
He urged public servants to put the interests of citizens first.
"Please work," he told the staff.
Lower local governments to be inspected
Nsubuga announced plans to visit lower local governments to assess staff attendance, performance and service delivery.
He also proposed introducing a rotational TPC system in the district's 11 lower local governments instead of holding all TPC meetings at the district headquarters.
"We should have a rotational TPC in the eleven lower local governments and only have one TPC here," he said.
He said the visits would begin the following week.
Nsubuga cited his recent visit to Kigarama Health Centre III, where he found about four staff members, including the in-charge, at their duty stations.
Extension officers put on notice
Nsubuga directed the Deputy CAO not to release funds to extension staff who fail to submit reports for the previous quarter.
He also warned officers against falsifying or "doctoring" reports to create an impression of good performance when work had not been done.
He challenged heads of departments to take firm action against non-performing staff and emphasised that supervisors must be accountable for the performance of employees under their supervision.
"Formerly, the burden of paying salaries was on the CAO, but now it is on the heads of departments," he said.
Masheruka tops performance assessment
The meeting also received the results of the 2026 Lower Local Government Performance Assessment, with Masheruka Town Council emerging as the best-performing lower local government with a score of 86%. Masheruka Sub-county was ranked last with 37%.
The results were:
Rank | Lower Local Government | Score
1 | Masheruka Town Council | 86%
2 | Kitagata Town Council | 77%
3 | Bugongi Town Council | 75%
4 | Kakindo Town Council | 67%
5 | Kigarama Sub-county | 63%
6 | Shuuku Town Council | 59%
7 | Rugarama Sub-county | 58%
8 | Kitagata Sub-county | 57%
9 | Kasaana Sub-county | 56%
10 | Kyangyenyi Sub-county | 41%
11 | Masheruka Sub-county | 37%
Nsubuga urged district departments and lower local governments to take the assessment results seriously, identify weaknesses and improve accountability and service delivery.
He said the ultimate measure of government performance should be the quality, efficiency and accessibility of services received by citizens.
