Agnes Nandutu, the State Minister for Karamoja affairs, has been remanded to Luzira Prison because of her alleged involvement in the theft of iron sheets intended for the Karamoja Community Empowerment Program.
The Bududa Woman Member of Parliament and a resident of Nantabulilwa in Seeta Mukono, Nandutu, was charged with one count of dealing with suspect property and hauled before the court presided over by Grade One Magistrate Esther Asiimwe on Wednesday.
The court has been informed that during the month of June 2022, Nandutu handled 2,000 prepainted iron sheets of gauge 28 belonging to the government by receiving and holding the iron sheets at the Office of the Prime Minister’s Stores in Namanve and Kkola Cell Bulwanyi Parish, Mukono District.
The iron sheets were allegedly acquired as a result of the loss of public property, which is a crime under Section 10 of the Anti-Corruption Act of 2000 as modified, according to the prosecution.
She rejected the allegations, and the prosecution, led by David Bisamunyu and Jonathan Muwaganya, immediately requested that she be brought before the High Court for trial after informing the court that their investigations were complete.
The iron sheets were purchased, but the case summary claimed that they wound up in the hands of unintended recipients, including Minister for Karamoja Affairs Mary Gorreti Kitutu Kimono and her personal assistant Joshua Abaho.
Later, Asiimwe took the case to the High Court for a hearing.
Charles Nandaah Wamukoota, Humphrey Tumwesigye, and John Nalera, Nandutu’s legal team, informed the court that they were prepared to request bail on their client’s behalf.
Nandaah informed the court that they had prepared a group of ministers and members of parliament who would appear in court with their paperwork and serve as sureties for their client.
The Magistrate, however, asserted that the file had been sent to the High Court for trial after the state’s investigations were swiftly concluded.
Although the law guarantees an accused person the right to a speedy trial, Nandutu’s attorneys occasionally expressed dissatisfaction with how quickly the investigations were concluded, claiming that the state acted hastily with the goal of preventing their client from receiving bail.
Until May 3rd, 2023, Asiimwe remanded Nandutu to Luzira Prison.
Nandutu is the third minister to be charged in the iron sheets affair by the Anti-Corruption Court after spending the night at Kira Division Police in the Wakiso District before appearing in court.
Amos Lugoloobi, the state minister for finance and economic planning, and Mary Gorreti Kitutu Kimono, the minister for Karamoja affairs, were recently charged in connection with the alleged diversion of the iron sheets.
The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) claimed that it was looking into the iron sheet scandal and that it was looking into 22 ministers, 31 MPs, and 13 chief administrative officers. However, Jacquelyn Okui, the spokeswoman for the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, stated that the files of those implicated will be coming in piecemeal as and when they are forwarded by the police, who are looking into the matter.
On Tuesday, attorney Male Mabirizi filed a petition with the Anti-Corruption Court, asking the court to rule that the investigations, arrests, detentions, and subsequent prosecutions of the Speaker, Vice President, Ministers, and Members of Parliament in this scandal were unlawful because, according to the law, they should not be held criminally liable; instead, the accounting officers should be held accountable.
Mabirizi contends that the piecemeal investigations, arrests, detentions, and prosecutions violate his right to a fair trial and convenient legal representation. He wants the investigations and prosecutions stopped while his case is being resolved.
The hearing in Mabirizi’s case is scheduled for May 22, 2023, before Justice Lawrence Gidudu.