Court appoints judge for Kutesa bribery case

The head of High Court Civil Division, Justice Andrew Bashaija, has been appointed to hear the bribery case against Foreign Affairs minister Sam Kutesa, Daily Monitor has learnt.

Mr Kutesa is accused of receiving a bribe of up to $500,000 (about Shs1.9b) from a-would-be investor, who was convicted for corruption in a US court last month.

By Friday, the High Court had not yet set the date for hearing Mr Kutesa’s case though this newspaper learnt that the minister alongside the Attorney General, who are listed as the respondents in the matter, have been summoned to file their defence.

Sources at the High Court told Daily Monitor that Mr Kutesa has been given 15 days from the date of receipt of the summons to file his defence before the hearing date is fixed.

If respondents/defendants (accused parties) do not file their defence within the stipulated period by court, the case is heard and determined on its merits in their absentia.

Around mid this month, a concerned citizen, Mr Brian Atuheire, petitioned court seeking a declaration that Mr Kutesa is unfit to hold a public office following the bribery allegations against him in the US court.
Mr Atuheire also wants court to issue an order for Mr Kutesa to immediately vacate office as Foreign Affairs minister and that he should also be charged criminally before courts of law.

In his petition, he states that he is seeking: “A declaration that the 1st respondent (minister Kutesa) is not fit to hold a public office. An order that the 1st respondent immediately vacates the office of the minister of Foreign Affairs and an order that the 2nd respondent (Attorney General) through the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), commences criminal proceedings against 1st respondent.”

The petition followed a judgment by a court in the United States of America about a month ago that convicted former Hong Kong Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr Patrick Ho, on charges of sending a bribe to Mr Kutesa to gain business favours in Uganda.

Prosecution relying on evidence gathered by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), argued before the United States court that Mr Ho sent the money from HSBC (Hong Kong) account of the energy non-government organisation, to Deutsche Bank in New York and onto Stanbic Bank in Uganda on May 6, 2016.

Court documents show that the alleged bribe to minister Kutesa was in exchange to secure business dealings in railway services, infrastructure construction, fishing, hydro energy, banking and finance for the Chinese conglomerate CEFC (China Energy co.)

Tasked
Days after the court verdict, President Museveni was asked by a journalist about what disciplinary measures he would take against his minister.

He said he had heard from Mr Kutesa that the money in question was given as charity to an organisation.
According to foreign court records, an FBI agent in Kampala, who tried to trace the charity NGO to address the issue, returned without results.

But in his petition before the High Court in Kampala, Mr Atuheire states that President Museveni on December 10 referred to the alleged bribe as a ‘gift’, which is an acknowledgment of the fact that the money was indeed received.
He said Mr Kutesa should have declared the same ‘gift’ to the Inspector General of Government as required by law.

REPORT IN OFFING
The Attorney General, Mr William Byaruhanga, who is listed as one of the respondents in this case, has since assured Parliament that he will come up with a preliminary report on Mr Kutesa bribery claims in January 2019.