The State House Anti-corruption team in liason with police today arrested Wakiso Town Clerk Mr Livingstone Mukalazi and the Town Council Engineer Mr Ssebugwawo Lawrence over alleged mismanagement of covid funds worth UGX.45million.
According to State House Anti-Graft Unit head Brig. Gen. Henry Isoke, the suspects are accused of neglect of duty and shoddy work leading to loss of public funds.
The arrest of the Town Clerk and Town Council Engineer raises the number of civil servants arrested in the ongoing monitoring excercise of government project to 12 including government officials from Kasese and Tororo Districts. The operations are led by the State House Anti-corruption Unit and the Minster for Economic monitoring, Hon Peter Ogwang.
In a joint operation conducted yesterday in Tororo District, police and Anti-graft teams arrested 7 civil servants including the District Senior Lands Management officer, the former chairperson area land committee, Municipal Engineer, Town Clerk and Directors of Tororo Lions Club Host Ltd. The Directors of Lion Club Host were arrested for conspiring with the Senior Lands management officer to transfer public land.
The said land is comprised in Plot 8-20 along Busia Road currently used as a children’s park.
The Tororo Municipality Town Clerk and the Municipal Engineer are also accused for alleged embezzlement of UGX180million meant for construction of Kagera bridge.
The 3 Directors of Lions Club Host were today arraigned before Tororo Chief Magistrate’s Court and charged with obtaining registration by false pretense and conspiracy to defraud. On the other hand, the Senior Lands Management officer and the Town Clerk were charged with forgery and conspiracy to commit a felony. All were remanded until 18 May, 2022.
Earlier, the State House Anti-graft teams arrested Alice Bwambale the Town Clerk of Mpondwe Lhubiliha Town Council in Kasese District together with the Senior Town Treasurer Baluku Pascal for mismanaging UGX.59million Discretionary Development Equalization Grant (DDEG) funds.
The DDEG is aimed to ensure that funding focuses on areas where services are lagging behind national standards. The arrested officials, however, diverted the funds to other operation activities and allowances whose accountability is also questionable.
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