The head of discipline in the Patriotic League Uganda, and MP for Igara East Constituency Michael Mawanda has been summoned by the Criminal Intelligence Directorate(CID) of the Police.
The UG Bulletin has learnt that Mawanda was over his alleged involvement in the theft, corruption and intentions to defraud Buyaka Growers Cooperative of war loss memorial compensation funds disbursed by government .
This website has further learnt that Mawanda was summoned together with Ignatius Wamakuye Mudimi, the MP for Elgon Constituency.
They will appear at CID on Wednesday, June, 19.
Last year, MPs on the Committee on Tourism, Trade and Industry were astonished to learn that Buyaka Growers Cooperative lured into a contract with a law firm that eventually cheated them, taking up the bigger percentage of the money.
Fred Masaba, Chairperson Buyaka Gowers Cooperative, narrated their ordeal dealing with a law firm identified as ‘Probata’, which he said was recommended to them by officials in the Ministry of Tourism, Trade and Industry.
“As a cooperative we solicited our own lawyer but she was rejected by the ministry official who manned the compensation process. He told us he can get us one who was well accustomed with the compensation process,” said Masaba.
Masaba said the lawyer and the ministry official have been inaccessible as their phones are switched off since March 2023.
By then, he said the law firm had only remitted to the cooperative about 3 percent of the total amount released by the Trade Ministry.
Any attempt to reach the ministry’s Permanent Secretary to claim the balance, Masaba said was blocked by some ministry officials.
“Having been cheated by the first law firm, we went to see the permanent secretary to clarify how the compensation process runs, before we could give a contract to ‘Probata’ but the official in charge blocked us,” Masaba said.
The development comes a few days after three Members of Parliament were sent to prison over the budget corruption scandal.
Lwengo District Woman MP Cissy Namujju, Yusuf Mutembuli of Bunyole East in Butaleja District, and Busiki MP Paul Akamba were arrested last week and arraigned before the Anti Corruption Court over corruption.
They are currently on remand.
President Museveni recently said he had started a serious war on corruption.
“I have been hearing stories that there is racket from ministry of finance to parliament. I have been hearing of it but now I have proof. Their time is up. I have been hearing that from ministry of finance, they arrange with accounting officers of ministries to come to parliament to provide certain funds provided they take a share,” Museveni said during his state of the nation address.
“I have been getting good information about corrupt actors among the public servants but also among the political actors. With firm evidence, I will crush these traitors. Public servants and political leaders that steal government money are corrupt and will be crushed
