Ugandan professionals in various fields
have been urged to demonstrate professionalism to stamp out corruption in the
country. The belief is, according to the
president of ICPAU, if professionalism is heeded to, cases of embezzlement,
fraud and corruption will be a thing of the past. This in reality, though,
seems far-fetched as Uganda is ranked highly on the global corruption scale.
Patrick
Kagoro, president of Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda, told
over 1,000 accountants and business personalities that with professionalism
adhered to, Uganda will achieve its desired development goals. He pointed out
that the principles of good financial accountability practices have largely
been forgotten by a number of organizations. “It is our role [as accountants]
to revive and inculcate these principles.”
He
commended the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) for promoting good financial
reporting in Uganda. And because of that, ICPAU is entering into a partnership
with CMA targeted at promoting financial literacy in the country. He encouraged
savings and advised that being a part of SACCOs gives way for more networking
opportunities for members and accumulation of personal savings and other
benefits.
“Those who work in the field of accounting
must not only be well qualified but also possess a high degree of professional
integrity.
“For
you to excel at individual as well as organizational level, you must be
trustworthy and honest.