The Minister for Karamoja Affairs, Mary Gorreti Kitutu Kimono, has been remanded to Luzira Prison on charges of misappropriation of public property, corruption, and conspiracy to defraud the government.
On Thursday, Kitutu was presented for arraignment before the court presided over by Chief Magistrate Joan Achiro. Along with her brother, Michael Naboya Kitutu, Kitutu was placed on remand.
Kitutu is accused of stealing 14,500 pre-painted iron sheets meant for the Karamoja Community Empowerment Program between June 2022 and January 2023 for her own use and the benefit of third parties, according to the charge sheet obtained by Uganda Radio Network.
The co-accused Naboya, a peasant farmer and resident of Bukawekha Sub County Namisindwa District, is also accused of receiving 100 iron sheets at the same time, despite the fact that they were stolen goods.
Along with Joshua Abaho, the Senior Assistant Secretary for the Ministry of Karamoja Affairs Office of the Prime Minister who did not show up in court, the two are accused. Abaho has received a criminal summons from the court.
But they disputed the accusations.
Jude Byamukama and Michael Wamasebu, Kitutu’s attorneys, requested bail on the grounds that their client is a highly well-known figure who has held a number of prestigious positions, including State Minister and current Cabinet Minister, and is 61 years old, making her an elderly Ugandan citizen.
The court was also informed that Kitutu is a highly regarded scientist and academician with a permanent address in the Bunga Makindye Division. She has been married to accountant Michael Kitutu since June 4, 1988, and the two have seven children together as well as seven grandchildren.
Wamasebu claims that Kitutu also has property under the court’s purview, including two parcels of land in the shape of a private mile in the Wakiso District, for which he has provided the court with two copies of the land titles.
The court was also informed that Kitutu suffers from a medical condition known as hypertensive heart disease with left ventricle stiffness (HHDD), which was identified by Mulago National Referral Hospital’s Dr. Charles Sendikadiwa on March 15, 2023.
The court was also informed that Kitutu’s condition has gotten worse in the two days she has been detained, despite the fact that it is a dangerous cardiac ailment, especially when she is under stress.
Wamasebu informed the court, “Your Honor, one of our coworkers, Bob Kasango, had the same condition, sought for bail, it was denied, and he died in Luzira Prison.
Wamasebu presented to the court Kitutu’s sureties, which included her self-employed husband Michael George Kitutu, a former member of parliament Simon Mulongo, a diplomat and special envoy to the African Union, Seth Wambede, a member of parliament for Mbale City’s northern division, and Dr. Joel Wandabwa, a plastic surgeon affiliated with Kiruddu Hospital.
The bail application was challenged by Assistant DPP Namatovu because it was based on an affidavit signed by Detective Muhammad Soweti, one of the investigating officers.
When released, Namatovu has stated that she will continue to interfere with prosecution witnesses because she already did so by preventing her mother, Contilda Kitutu, from giving a statement while some of the exhibits in this case were found at her home. Namatovu has noted that investigations are still ongoing.
Namatovu claims that the sureties offered do not satisfy the criteria for Kitutu’s release on bail in a case of this magnitude because the nature of the accusations against him involves the theft of public property, a serious offense that carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison if convicted.
But because it was already late and the state needed more time to confirm the legitimacy of the two land titles that the Minister had given, Achiro detained the two until April 12.
