Table 3.
Examples of abuses
| Type of abuse | How it works | Illustrative quotes |
|---|---|---|
| Delaying duties | Work slowly or at weekends in order to increase overtime, lunch allowance, or per diem | There are times when people do not do their duties in time, so that they should look like they have worked over time or during lunch … Some other people will decide to come on the weekend because they want to get allowances, yet they are not supposed to. (high-level officer, Malawi) |
| If I am serious, that work can take me maybe 2 days; but I may dilly-dally that activity to take 5 days … one can delay deliberately just to increase the days … (high-level officer, Malawi) | ||
| Double-dipping | Getting allowances from two sources at the same time | Officers are always in Kampala attending more than one workshop a day, to just sign and be able to get that money … Many do get these same allowances at their district (their duty station). Therefore, they do get double allowances. (mid-level officer, Uganda) |
| Exaggerating days | Over-estimating the time it will take to complete a job, so as to make more on per diem | There is a tendency for staff to plan for as many nights and field days as possible … officers plan for field visits from Monday to Friday. Then you wonder when they sit at their desks. (NGO officer, Uganda) |
| Other staff members do plan for more days to carry out activities … especially now that we are going into Christmas season. People have to make some money for that period. (NGO officer, Uganda) | ||
| Skimming days | Doing work in less time than budgeted, or not completing work, but keeping the full per diem | Sometimes they go to the field and come back earlier than planned and don’t report for work, so as to make it look like they are still in the field and still claim all the days that were put on paper. (NGO officer, Malawi) |
| Some officers lie that they have travelled, when they haven’t. Some officers request for allowances for 7 days, but in actual sense work for 2 days. (high-level officer, Uganda) | ||
| Shorting the driver | Pocketing per diems meant for other staff | Officers in higher positions cut the amounts of allowances we are meant to get. (low-level officer, Uganda) |
| Workshop fraud | Falsifying participant lists, keeping per diems not disbursed | Ghost participants are included on attendance lists … Instead of having workshops on different days, they merge them into one such that they save allowances for themselves. (NGO officer, Uganda) |