On Thursday afternoon, the State House Anti-Corruption Unit, in collaboration with the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), arrested Geraldine Ssali Busuulwa, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Trade, Industries, and Cooperatives.
Ssali is expected to appear in court tomorrow to face charges of Conspiracy to Defraud and Causing Financial Loss.
Ssali has been accused of missappropriation of up to Sh8 billion. Her woes arose last year from a parliamentary probe into alleged financial misappropriation of supplementary funds to the for the financial year 2021/22.
The committee on trade and tourism called for Ssali’s removal from the role of accounting officer, citing abuse of office, causing financial loss, negligence of duty, and other charges, and the report was adopted by parliament.
They found that Ssali failed to control and ensure the proper use of money appropriated to the vote for procurement of renovation works on the ministry’s offices at Farmers House.
It recommended that ministry officials including Tom Opio, Daniel Kalule, Deo Byaruhanga and Rosemary Asiimwe, be investigated by the Inspectorate of Government (IG) and the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP), in accordance with the Anti-Corruption Act, 2009.
The MPs also recommended possible prosecution of Ssali over abuse of her authority.
“Ms Geraldine Ssali should be investigated with a view of prosecution by the DPP for negligence of duty, disobedience of statutory duty, abuse of office and causing financial loss to Government,” the report read
The Committee Chairperson, Mwine Mpaka noted that in the Financial Year 2021/2022, a supplementary request of eight billion Shillings was made by then permanent secretary, Grace Adong, for rent of office premises, but parliament granted five billion.
Other revelations during the probe included the authorisation by Ssali of procurement of four used cars for ministry officials at a cost of two billion Shillings.
Ssali’s arrest adds her to a list of officials, including MPs Michael Mawanda Maranga, Mudiimi Wamakuyu, Paul Akamba, lawyer Julius Kirya Taitankonko, and Leonard Kavundira, a Ministry of Trade official. These individuals were previously charged with diverting over UGX 3.4 billion meant for war loss compensation by the Ugandan government to Buyaka Growers Cooperative Society.
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