HOIMA – Hoima District LCV Chairperson, Kadiri Kirungi and three other members of the District Executive Committee [DEC] on Thursday evening appeared before the Hoima Chief Magistrates Court and were charged for forgery and uttering false documents.
The suspects were arrested on Monday from Kampala where they had gone to make statements. The suspects who were heavily gauged by armed police were first taken to Hoima district headquarters and helped the detectives to carry out a search of their offices before appearing in court.
Kadiri was been charged together with his Vice-Chairperson, Benson Chiche who is also the Buhanika Sub County Councillor, Jackson Mugenyi Mulindambura, the District Secretary for Production and Natural Resources and Geoffrey Kumakech, the District Secretary for Finance and Administration who is also the Buseruka Sub County Councillor.
According to the charge sheet which was presented to the court by State Prosecutor, Julius Ocen, the four are accused of forgery which is contrary to sections 342 and 347 of the Penal Code Act Cap 120, uttering a false document contrary to sections 351 and 347 of the Penal Code Act and conspiracy to commit a felony.
The prosecution told the court that on August 28, 2021; the four while at Hoima Cultural Lodge in Hoima district connived and forged the District Executive Committee [DEC] minutes with intent to deceive, purporting the same had been made on June, 22nd 2021 during the DEC meeting.
Kadiri is also accused of intentionally uttering and fraudulently issuing a false document regarding the District Executive Committee [DEC] minutes to one, Bernard Ochaya while at the State House Anti-Corruption Unit in Entebbe on 30th August 2021, purporting to have been made during the DEC meeting on 22 June-2021 which was not true.
The suspects pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
The Hoima Chief Magistrate, James Opio who presided over the court which started at around 5:00 pm granted the suspects a cash bail of Shs 1.5m each until October 13, 2021, when they will return to court for a hearing of their case. Their sureties were granted a non-cash bail of Shs 10m each.
Trouble for Kadiri and the three officials stemmed from the alleged misuse of road equipment that was impounded by the Police and the State House Anti-Corruption Unit in late August.
The equipment that includes a grader and a Vibro roller machine was found on a private farm owned by an Indian investor at Kaduku village in Kigumba Town Council, Kiryandongo district last month. At the time they were impounded, the grader and the Vibro roller had their number plates plucked off.
This led to the arrest of the Hoima District Engineer, Ibrahim Luswata, Vincent Irumba, the works supervisor, and Charles Tibagwa, a mechanic attached to Hoima district local government. They were accused of conniving with other district leaders to misuse the equipment.
Last week, Benson Chiche told the media that the district had legally hired out the road equipment following a resolution made by the DEC in June this year.
However, the minutes he claimed to have been followed as they hired equipment are being investigated.
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