Town clerk held over graft claim

Acountability. The Ntungamo official is accused of selling off district property and theft of funds.

Police in Ntungamo have arrested the Rubaare Town Council Clerk, Mr Topher Nshemereza, over allegations of abuse office and corruption.
Mr Nshemereza, who was arrested on Tuesday, was taken into police custody.

He was accused by some district authorities and sub-county councillors of swindling funds meant for development, and selling town council property.

Ntungamo District Police Commander Francis Kabera confirmed the arrest, saying Mr Nshemereza had been detained after failing to respond to criminal summons against him.

“We gave him criminal summons through the chief administrative officer but he failed to respond. We had to move in and arrest him. He had adamantly failed to respond and dodged police. We have charged him with abuse of office as we await other charges that may be sanctioned against him,” Mr Kabera told the Daily Monitor on Tuesday.

Ntungamo Chief Administrative Officer Musa Ismail Onzu said Mr Nshemereza allegedly sold land belonging to Rubaare Town Council without following procurement procedures and had been soliciting for money on behalf of the council illegally.

“He sold plots of land belonging to Rubaare Town Council and did not follow the procurement procedures, no one has seen the money and even those who paid for the plots do not know the plots they bought,” Mr Onzu said.

The District Chairman, Mr Denis Singahache, welcomed the arrest, saying it was a gesture of intolerance to corruption in the district.
Mr Nshemereza could not be reached for comment as he was still under police custody by press time.

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