The Anti-Corruption Court has remanded the Minister for Karamoja Affairs Mary Gorreti Kitutu Kimono and woman member of Parliament for Manafwa and her brother Micheal Naboya Kitutu to Luzira Prison.
The court was presided by the Anti-Corruption Court chief magistrate Joan Aciro for mismanagement of Karamoja relief items and causing loss of public property, corruption.
Earlier today, the Minister pleaded not guilty at the Anti-Corruption Court to charges and she was charged with her brother, Michael Naboya Kitutu,a resident of Bukawekha Sub County Namisindwa District who received 100 iron sheets yet they were stolen property together with Joshua Abaho, the Senior Assistant Secretary of the Ministry of Karamoja Affairs Office of the Prime Minister in which Ms Kitutu denies all these allegations.
In the month of June 2022 and January 2023 it was reported that Ms Kitutu mishandled public property in form of 14,000 pre-painted iron sheets from the office of the Prime Minister’s Stores, Namanve, Mukono District that was meant for the people of Karamoja Community Empowerment Program.
According to her lawyers Jude Byamukama and Michael Wamasebu applied for bail Kitutu because she is a highly regarded person in Uganda and she has served in different respectful offices as a State Minister, Cabinet Minister among others.
“The honourable caused a loss of public property between June 2022 and January 2023 by diverting 9,000 pre-painted iron sheets intended for the Karamoja Community Empowerment Program to her own benefit and that of third parties. It is also alleged that in January 2023, Kitutu diverted 5,500 iron sheets, and her brother received 100 of them in Namisindwa district,” the charge sheet indicated.
In March, the Clerk of Parliament, Adolf Mwesige, was asked to file a notice of motion for the censure of Minister Kitutu in which the President also directed CID and the State House Anti-corruption Unit to jointly carry out investigations into the scandal, thus the suspects recorded statements at CID before the DPP.
The trio has been remanded the two until April 12, The two were remanded until April 12, 2023, when they will reappear before court for bail ruling after the verifications on April 11, 2023.
