Three civil servants, who were last year convicted of Shs120 million fraud, have been re-appointed to various positions in Jinja city, despite the Solicitor General’s advice that they should have been dismissed from office.
Samuel Maali (the principal human resource officer), Ronald Elijah Kafifi (principal treasurer) and Jemima Mirembe (senior assistant accountant) were on April 5, 2022, convicted of conspiracy to defraud by the Anti-Corruption Court’s Chief Magistrate, Joan Aciro, after they pleaded guilty to the offence.
Accordingly, each of the convicts was ordered to pay a fine of sh2m or serve a one-year prison sentence in default.
They opted to pay the fine.
The accused were convicted after admitting to irregularly authorising the payment of Shs120m to United for Development Savings and Credit Cooperative Society (SACCOS) as salary arrears deductions for 2016.
The letter requesting payment was originated by John Stephen Okiror, the board chairperson of the SACCOS.
State House Anti-Corruption Unit investigations revealed that there was no memorandum of understanding between the SACCOS and Jinja municipal council regarding giving loans to the staff.
This irregularity came to light in 2020 when the finance ministry conducted a review of the Integrated Financial Management System to verify the regularity of transactions.
Solicitor General’s advice In a letter dated April 14, 2023, from the solicitor general’s office signed by John Bosco Rujagaata Suuza, addressed to the Jinja city clerk, it was stated that a conviction resulting from a plea bargain agreement carries the same gravity as a conviction after a full trial.
Suuza signed the letter on behalf of the Solicitor General, Francis Atoke and copied it to the attorney general and deputy attorney general.
He explained that section 46 of the Anti-Corruption Act (as amended) provides that a person, who is convicted under sections 2 to 25, shall be disqualified from holding a public office for 10 years.
Suuza said since Maali, Kafifi and Mirembe were convicted under section 309 of the Penal Code Act, the provisions of section 46 of the Anti-Corruption Act do not apply to them.
Accordingly, he said, their conviction does not disqualify them from holding a public office.
Nevertheless, he stated that the law expects that they are held accountable through the administrative process.
Suuza said sections of the Standing Orders stipulate that when a public officer is convicted under the Penal Code Act or any other written law, the responsible officer must assess the offence’s gravity, considering whether it was committed at the workplace or outside work place and the severity of the sentence.
He said that based on the assessment, the responsible officer must then make a recommendation to the relevant service commission for appropriate action, including dismissal.
“Failure by the responsible officers to take mandatory action against the three convicts amounts to neglect of duty,” Suuza said.
He said the responsible officer should have taken action against the trio upon learning of their conviction.
“He or she should have requested from court a certified copy of the plea bargain agreement, and thereafter take an action required of him or her as advised,” Suuza said.
He also discovered that Steven Mwembe, a senior law enforcement officer at Bugembe town council, who was jointly charged with the trio, was convicted of corruption for impersonating William Mpagi, an official from the Commission of Inquiry into Land Matters, to solicit a bribe of sh3.5m to expedite a land complaint.
Surprisingly, Mwembe remains on the payroll, despite being barred from holding public office.
“The failure, refusal or neglect by the responsible officer to have Mwembe vacate office amounts to abetting and aiding the commission of the illegality and neglect of duty,” he advised.
Suuza recommended that the responsible officer should formally request a certified copy of the plea bargain agreement from the court and compel Mwembe to vacate his office immediately, and recommended that his name be removed from the payroll.
City clerk speaks
When contacted about his appointment, Maali referred to the Jinja city clerk, Edward Luwanga, who said he acted on the advice of the solicitor general and that it is not written anywhere that the convicts should not be redeployed.
Who raised the complaint?
The solicitor general’s advice followed a complaint by Anti-Corruption Coalition Uganda, a non-government organisation, that the convicts were appointed for promotion in various positions in Jinja city without clearance.
