Agnes Nandutu, the Bududa Woman MP, has been found guilty of unlawful possession of government iron sheets meant for Karamoja.
Justice Jane Okuo of the Anti-Corruption Court ruled today that Nandutu knowingly dealt with government property that had been unlawfully diverted from a public programme intended for vulnerable beneficiaries, contrary to section 21A(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act.
Her bail was cancelled immediately after conviction. She will be sentenced on April 10.
The prosecution was led by David Bisamunyu, chief state attorney, and Innocent Aleto, senior state attorney, both from the ODPP.
Court heard that between June and July 2022, Nandutu received and retained 2,000 pre-painted iron sheets marked “Office of the Prime Minister”, despite having reason to believe they had been irregularly obtained.
Prosecution told court that the iron sheets were part of a government programme under the Office of the Prime Minister aimed at supporting disarmament and vulnerable communities in Karamoja.
The programme, funded through a supplementary budget of about Shs39.94bn for the 2021/2022 financial year, involved distributing relief items including iron sheets.
Investigations showed that a total of 95,044 iron sheets had been procured and stored at OPM facilities in Namanve for official distribution.
In June 2022, officials requisitioned 10,000 iron sheets for a presidential launch in Moroto district. However, only 1,000 were issued, leaving a balance of 9,000 sheets in store.
Shortly after the launch on June 13, which Nandutu attended, she was informed by the then minister for Karamoja affairs that 2,000 iron sheets had been allocated to her, allegedly for landslide victims.
Court found that Nandutu accepted the allocation and facilitated their collection. On June 23, she provided transport funds and instructed her political assistant to pick up the iron sheets from Namanve.
The consignment was first taken to a private residence in Wakiso district, where she verified it, before being transferred to her home in Seeta, Mukono district, where it was stored under her authority.
During investigations in March 2023, Nandutu recorded a statement with police confirming the sequence of events and later led investigators to her farm.
In a statement, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) said that Nandutu’s conviction sends a clear message that no public official is above the law and that misuse of public resources will attract firm legal consequences.
