After trying bail for good months, the High Court’s Anti-corruption division has granted a 150 Million shillings cash bail to three jailed MPs who are accused of soliciting a 20% kick-back from the anticipated increased budget of the UHRC.
The three MPs; Yusuf Mutembule of Bunyole East, Busiki County MP Paul Akamba and Lwengo District Woman MP Cissy Donozia Namujju have each been granted a Ugx 50m bail, deposit their respective passports in court and their nine sureties has each been ordered to sign a non-cash bail of Ugx 100M to ensure that the MPs return back to court for trial.
Trial Justice Lawrence Gidudu temporarily released the three MPs after finding out that their back-fired scheme of soliciting from the UHRC anticipated enhanced budget din’t not involve personal violence nor loss of any money or assets to be recovered since it was a fruitless hunt. Gidudu stresses that there is no recovery process that the legislators may frustrate.
Now this combined with the fact that soliciting of the kick-back did not involve personal violence and the fact that the sureties who are all fellow legislators are the most highly paid public officers surprising any profession and having capacity to increase their privileges to meet the high standards of living places them as the most substantial, hence the grant of bail.
However the judge gave assurance to prosecution that this bail is not meant to frustrate the progress of the case as corruption allegations are treated seriously by court adding that the three MPs have been further ordered to sign commitments along with their lawyers to show that they will attend court and conclude the case before 31st October 2024 as the use of bail to delay the trial will lead or an automatic review of the same.
However MP Akamba did not leave prison because he still has another corruption charge of stealing Ugx 200m that was meant to compensate war victims of Buyaka Growers co-operative society in which he has not yet secured bail.
The Three MPs will now return to court on 8th August 2024 for further hearing of their case. Prior to their bail, Justice Gidudu first made a ruling throwing out the prosecution’s desire to have an audio recording relating to the conversations held by Mariam Wagandya, the Chairperson UHRC and the three MPs about the anticipated kick-back played in court.
In his ruling, Gidudu stated that Wangandya doesn’t have any forensic expertise in audio recordings apart from identifying the recording device she used. Wangandya is expected to return to the witness stand on Thursday to conclude her evidence.