KAMPALA, July 16, 2026 — The High Court Civil Division has ordered the Registrar of Cooperatives to conduct a comprehensive audit of Exodus Savings and Credit Cooperative Society [Exodus SACCO] after finding that newly recruited Uganda Police officers may have been enrolled into the SACCO without their informed consent.
In a ruling delivered yesterday by Justice Bonny Isaac Teko, the court found that police recruits from the 19th intake at Kabalye Police Training School in 2015, and those from subsequent intakes, were automatically enrolled into the SACCO. Monthly deductions ranging from Shs 20,000 to Shs 50,000 were subsequently made from their salaries without their lawful consent.
The case was brought by lawyer Stephen Kalali, who argued that the compulsory enrolment violated the police officers’ constitutional right to freedom of association under Article 29[1][e] of the Constitution.
Teko held that the right to freedom of association includes both the freedom to join and the freedom not to join an association. The court noted that Exodus SACCO failed to produce any signed membership application forms to demonstrate that the affected officers had voluntarily joined the cooperative.
The court further found that Exodus SACCO had been operating financial services without the licence required under the Tier 4 Microfinance Institutions and Money Lenders Act, 2016. Although the SACCO began the process of applying for a licence from the Bank of Uganda in October 2024, the judge ruled that registration under the Cooperative Societies Act does not replace the statutory requirement to obtain an operating licence.
Among the key orders issued by the court were:
- The Registrar of Cooperatives must conduct an audit of the SACCO’s membership records and accounts and submit a report to the court within nine months.
- Exodus SACCO must regularise the membership of the affected officers within six months by allowing them either to remain members or to withdraw without penalty.
- Officers who opt to withdraw must receive their accumulated savings together with any accrued dividends.
- The SACCO must complete its licensing process within six months or cease accepting new deposits and issuing new loans until it is licensed, although it may continue servicing existing loans.
- The Attorney General must ensure that no police officer is enrolled into the SACCO or subjected to salary deductions without his or her informed consent.
The court also criticised the Government for failing to investigate concerns previously raised by Parliament regarding the operations of Exodus SACCO and awarded the costs of the application to Stephen Kalali.
https://thecooperator.news/exodus-sacco-honours-outstanding-members-at-12th-agm/
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