Court sets November 4 for Kitutu’s iron sheets trial

Updated by HICHI News Agency at 1527 EAT on Monday 12 October 2026

The pre-trial hearing of former Karamoja Affairs Minister Mary Goretti Kitutu over the alleged diversion of 14,500 iron sheets meant for vulnerable communities in Karamoja has been scheduled for November 4, 2026.

Anti-Corruption Division Judge David Makumbi set the date on Monday after Chief State Attorney Jonathan Muwaganya told the court that the prosecution was ready to proceed, following the dismissal of an appeal that had stalled the case for nearly two years.

The court also advised the accused persons to consider a plea bargain if they believed they were liable for the offences.

Kitutu faces two counts of causing loss of public property relating to 9,000 and 5,500 pre-painted iron sheets, respectively, and one count of conspiracy to defraud.

Kitutu is jointly charged with Joshua Abaho, a senior assistant secretary accused of conspiring with her to divert the iron sheets. Her brother, Michael Naboya, is separately accused of receiving 100 iron sheets in Situmi Village, Namisindwa District, allegedly knowing that they had been unlawfully obtained.

The alleged offences were committed between June 2022 and January 2023 and relate to iron sheets procured under the Karamoja Community Empowerment Programme to support vulnerable communities in the sub-region. The prosecution alleges that the supplies were diverted from their intended beneficiaries.

The accused persons have denied the charges and were released on bail.

The case had stalled after Kitutu challenged her prosecution in two separate criminal proceedings arising from investigations into the management of funds and supplies under the Karamoja supplementary programme.

On September 18, 2026, the Court of Appeal in Kampala dismissed her appeal, clearing the way for the Anti-Corruption Division to resume proceedings.

A three-member panel comprising Deputy Chief Justice Moses Kazibwe Kawumi and Justices Christopher Gashirabake and Geoffrey Kiryabwire upheld an earlier decision rejecting Kitutu’s application to consolidate the two criminal cases or have one of them declared invalid.

Kitutu had argued that both prosecutions arose from substantially the same facts relating to the Karamoja supplementary budget for the 2021/2022 financial year. She contended that trying her in separate proceedings amounted to splitting a single criminal transaction and violated her constitutional right to a fair hearing.

However, the Court of Appeal found that the cases involved different allegations, expenditure items, periods of alleged offending, co-accused persons and evidential requirements.

The first case, which returned to court on Monday, was instituted by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and centres on allegations surrounding the diversion of iron sheets procured under the Karamoja Community Empowerment Programme.

The second case was instituted by the Inspectorate of Government and concerns alleged irregularities in the management of supplementary funds intended for peacebuilding, disarmament, monitoring and other administrative activities in Karamoja.

In its ruling, the Court of Appeal held that separate prosecutions could proceed where the alleged offences were distinct, even if they arose from the same government programme or broader public inquiry.

The justices also rejected Kitutu’s argument that the involvement of different investigative agencies amounted to an abuse of the prosecutorial process. They noted that complex cases involving public expenditure could require investigations by different constitutional and statutory bodies acting within their respective mandates.

The court further found that Kitutu had not demonstrated actual prejudice or shown that the separate proceedings had significantly undermined the fairness of the criminal process.

The appeal was dismissed in its entirety, with each party ordered to bear its own costs.

Kitutu last appeared before Justice Makumbi on August 31, 2026, when the case was adjourned to October 12 to allow the parties to await the Court of Appeal’s decision.

Following the dismissal of the appeal and the prosecution’s confirmation that it was ready to proceed, the court scheduled the pre-trial hearing for November 4 and a further hearing for December 2, 2026.

The case is part of the wider Karamoja iron sheets scandal, which implicated several politicians and public officials over the distribution of government supplies intended for vulnerable communities.

Former State Minister for Karamoja Affairs Agnes Nandutu was convicted in a related case and sentenced to four years in prison earlier this year.

Nandutu blamed Kitutu for her conviction and imprisonment, arguing that her senior colleague had failed to guide her on how to handle the iron sheets despite knowing that she was relatively new to Parliament and Cabinet.

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) also withdrew similar charges against State Minister for Economic Planning Amos Lugoloobi.

Following Nandutu’s conviction and the withdrawal of charges against Lugoloobi, Kitutu remains among the prominent figures facing prosecution over the iron sheets scandal.

-Observer

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