The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) has summoned Igara County MP Michael Mawanda and Elgon County MP Nyasio Mudimi Wamakuyu over allegations of financial mismanagement concerning war loss compensation funds paid to cooperatives.
Mawanda and Wamakuyu are required to appear at CID Headquarters in Kibuli, Kampala, at 2:00 PM on Wednesday, June 19, 2024.
According to a reliable source, the summons were sent to Parliament on Monday afternoon.
“Yes, CID wrote to Parliament to release MP Michael Mawanda and Wamakuyu Mudimi to aid in the investigations into the theft of funds meant for cooperatives,” the source stated.
This investigation follows a Parliament inquiry ordered by Speaker Anita Among on August 29, 2023, which uncovered extensive corruption within cooperatives.
Mawanda was associated with the West Mengo Growers Cooperative Society. The cooperative had initially decided to engage JM Musisi and Co. Advocates to pursue its claim of Shs 14 billion from the Ministry of Trade, Industries and Cooperatives.
However, Mawanda, who was not a shareholder, advised the SACCO to hire the city law firm M/S Justin Mungoma and Co. Advocates instead.
The Ministry of Trade released Shs 2 billion for the SACCO through the law firm recommended by Mawanda, but only Shs 50 million reached the intended beneficiaries.
Muusa Bagala, the accountant of West Mengo Growers Cooperative Society, told the Parliament committee chaired by Mwine Mpaka that upon learning about the Shs 2 billion disbursement, he approached Mawanda’s office in Parliament.
“When we asked Hon Mawanda about the compensation, he suggested a Shs 50 million token to the SACCO’s leaders,” Bagala said, adding that this money was received from the lawyers of M/S Justin Mungoma and Co. Advocates at KCB Bank in Kampala.
Meanwhile, Mudimi, the former deputy chairperson of the Budget Committee of Parliament, is accused of colluding with the state and other legislators to pass a Shs 164 billion compensation fund, from which he later became a beneficiary.
Testimonies from Buyaka Growers’ Cooperative Society implicated Kirya Co. & Advocates, recommended by Leonard Kavunduria, a top Ministry of Trade official.
The law firm allegedly paid substantial amounts to various individuals, including MP Ignatius Mudimi Nyasio Wamakuyu, who purportedly received Shs 1,050,000,000.
The re-arrest of Busiki County MP, Paul Akamba, is also said to be related to the cooperatives’ funds. In December 2023, State Minister for Trade Harriet Ntababazi informed the Parliament’s Committee on Trade and Tourism that up to 30 legislators were under criminal investigation for their alleged roles in the embezzlement of Shs 164 billion.
“The Criminal Investigation Directorate (CID) is handling the files. Around five files have been identified, and it wasn’t only the Ministry; more than 30 MPs are involved, including five active opposition MPs,” said Ntabazi.
This development comes after the recent arrest and remanding of three legislators to Luzira prison over corruption charges.
Yusuf Mutembuli of Bunyole East, the deputy chairperson of the Legal Committee of Parliament, Cissy Namujju of Lwengo District, and Paul Akamba were charged with soliciting money from the Chairperson of the Uganda Human Rights Commission, Mariam Wangadya, on May 13, 2024, at Hotel Africana in Kampala City.
The State alleged they demanded 20% of the anticipated enhanced budget of the UHRC for the financial years 2024-2026, claiming they could exert improper influence over the Budget Committee of the Parliament to increase the UHRC budget.
