WikiLeaks Exposes Uganda Oil Secrets

WikiLeaks has been unfolding long hidden secrets of the world powers from a leaked US cable which has made many super powers to quake on their heels. However, the curtains has been removed for Uganda too. In a leaked cable, Ugandan ministers have been accused of corruption related to the secretive oil deals.

Even the arrest of the WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has not stopped the current secret exposing storm to blow towards Uganda. As Assange was being denied bail by a London court, the trouble was just beginning to boil in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.

 Some where near the end of 2009, the vice president of Tullow oil Tim O’hanlon had a conversation with the USA ambassador to Uganda. In the leaked information, he was quoted complaining about the Uganda Security Minister Amama Mbambazi and Minister Hillary Onek. The conversation was then sent in December 2009 by Donald Cordel, the economic officer at the US Embassy in Uganda.

In the cable which found its way WikiLeaks, Hanlon is quoted to have said that senior Uganda government ministers  where compensated to support the sale of a patner firms explorations and production rights to ENI, an Italian Oil company. The cable title which Donald sent was entitled "Tullow sees corruption in oil sale"

However, Tullow Oil's Hanlon in a letter to president Yoweri Kaguta Museveni denied all allegation that he had mentioned such to the US ambassador to Uganda. He said

As part of a general discussion about doing business in Africa with the US ambassador to Uganda, I made reference to a number of rumours then in circulation in the local media in Kampala to illustrate the issues the oil and gas industry faced. At no time did I give any credence to these rumours and would therefore dispute the record of our conversation as detailed by Wikileaks. In fact, President Museveni’s government rightly insisted on a transparent process — which led directly to the joint venture agreement between CNOOC, Total and Tullow.

ENI has also come out to strongly distance themselves from the allegation, the spokes person of ENI, the Italian Oil giant refered to the story as a "ploy to destroy its (ENI) credibility"

“That could only happen if they have evidence. It is different from saying that there are rumours. It is absolute rubbish,” said ENI spokes person.

One of the ministers who was implicated in the leaked cable also referred to the leak as defamotory and unfounded on truth. He denied having received any payments for the deal.

When to writing to President Museveni about the issue, the Tullow Oil vice president said that in December 2009, he only discussed different issues with the US ambassador to Uganda especially about the rumors which where sweeping Uganda at the moment

Of course, I never made such a claim to the US ambassador but merely discussed with him at our meeting in December 2009 the detailed stories published in the previous week’s local press and the associated rumors circulating in Kampala at that time. I have no evidence to present implicating the Honourable Ministers in corruption and have no reason to believe that the rumors sweeping Kampala at the time were actually true.

Wiki Leaks has put the worlds presidents and super powers on a knee point while uncovering many of the secret conversions. The owner of WikeLeaks Julian Assange was arrested in London after Sweden issued an arrest warrant for him on suspicions of having sex with a sleeping woman and for molestation. 

Friends of Wiki Leaks and Julian Assange in the hacking community have resorted to counter revenge on all the websites which have negatively impacted Julian and WikiLeaks especially those which closed down his credit cards and the servers which put of his website.

Millions of people on the Web are also signing a paper to send to the Australian Prime Minister so that Julian can be helped out. It is not not so certain what will happen to wikileaks the whistle blower now that the founder is in jail. However, the spokes person of WikiLeaks has vowed to continue publishing and on schedule. He also mention that there is an "atomic like" information which will be released in case anything happens to Assange or the website. The information has already been sent to 100,000 people and will be given the key to open it when the right time come.