The former party president of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), Dr. Kizza Besigye, has dismissed a report released by the party’s Elders’ Committee on an investigation into allegations of spending unclean money.
The report, presented last week, showed that the party president, Patrick Oboi Amuriat, and secretary general, Nandala Mafabi, had not taken any money from suspicious sources.
However, Besigye told journalists on Monday that Mafabi had been lying about the 300 million shillings (about $80,000) he asked Besigye to keep for him in 2020. Besigye said that Mafabi asked him to keep the money for him to which he agreed to keep the money, but that he never saw it again.
“The elders did not make any attempt to establish the facts about the dirty money,” Besigye said. “They just took Mafabi’s word for it.”
Besigye said that he had evidence that Mafabi had received the money from a suspicious source, and that he would be releasing it to the public soon.
He also called on the FDC to hold a fresh investigation into the allegations of dirty money, and to expel Mafabi from the party if he is found to be guilty and that he is prepared to testify before any such investigation.
The FDC Elders Committee investigated allegations that top party officials received “dirty” money from President Museveni. The committee found no evidence to support these allegations, and cleared Mafabi and Amuriat of any wrongdoing.
In a statement, the FDC Elders’ Committee said that they stand by their report, and that they believe it is a fair and accurate assessment of the evidence.
The committee’s report found that the FDC faced a financial crisis prior to the 2021 general elections. Mafabi was authorized by the National Executive Committee to borrow funds to support party activities during that period. He raised money from various sources, including Dr. Besigye.
Mafabi clarified that he had raised money for agents and asked Dr. Besigye to hold shs 300 million for him, which Besigye accepted. He also presented bank statements showing that he had withdrawn Shs 500 million from his account at Stanbic Bank, Kyambogo.
The committee found that Mafabi’s actions were not for personal gain, but for the benefit of the party. They concluded that there was no evidence to support the allegations that he received “dirty” money from President Museveni.