Former Post Bank Uganda managing director Stephen Mukweli has been acquitted of all charges related to the controversial payment of Shs292 million to a commission agent hired during the bank’s bid for the Social Assistance Grants for Empowerment (SAGE) project.
The High Court’s Anti-Corruption Division cleared Mukweli and five other senior bank officials, arguing that the state prosecutor failed to prove any wrongdoing.
Justice Jane Okuo Kajuga, in a detailed judgment found that the prosecution had not demonstrated that the accused acted arbitrarily, caused financial loss to the bank, or conspired to defraud the government.
‘Having considered the evidence and the law, I agree with the assessors. The accused are acquitted on all counts,’ the judge stated.
Mukweli, together with co-accused Alex Kayaayo, Fred Wasike, Gilbert Nuwamanya, Mwesigwa Jackson, and businessman Muhereza Kachoboye, had been on trial for abuse of office, causing financial loss, and conspiracy to defraud.
The prosecution had claimed that the officers irregularly processed and approved the commission payment to Kachoboye for helping Post Bank prepare and win the bid to serve as the SAGE payment service provider.
But the court found that Kachoboye had contributed to the bank’s preparation to winning bid, contrary to claims that he was paid for no work done.
Testimony from several witnesses, including senior bank officials, supported the defence argument that he helped compile the bid and provided market intelligence that informed the bank’s proposal.
Justice Kajuga cited evidence that on October 5, 2015, a day before the submission deadline, ‘the agent arrived with copies of the bid and soft copies on a flash drive,’ which were subsequently sealed by the Company Secretary and submitted to the Ministry.
The judge also dismissed the allegation that the bank suffered any loss, noting that the SAGE contract turned out to be highly profitable, generating over Shs8.2 billion for the bank by July 2019.
‘The payment could not be regarded as a loss, thus unfairly prejudicing the employer,’ the court noted after reviewing the Auditor General’s report and witness testimonies confirming the value derived from the project.
Justice Kajuga emphasized that the prosecution failed to prove that any of the accused had criminal intent to commit the offenses charged. The court held that while procedural lapses may have occurred in the hiring of the commission agent, these did not amount to criminal conduct.
‘There was no evidence of intent to defraud. The offence is not proved,’ the judge ruled in relation to the conspiracy charge.
The defence had argued that the payment to Kachoboye followed established bank practices of rewarding individuals who brought business and that all actions taken by the accused fell within their official mandates.
They further warned that failure to honour the contract could have exposed the bank to legal claims for breach. Evidence from the accused and documents presented in court showed that Kachoboye’s role was primarily to support the preparation of the bid not to interface directly with Ministry officials, a distinction the judge agreed had been overlooked by the prosecution.
The court also faulted investigative gaps, including failure to properly examine bid preparation documents or call key witnesses such as the Company Secretary. These omissions weakened the prosecution’s case, leading the court to conclude that the payment had been justified under the terms of the commission agreement.
Following the acquittal, Justice Kajuga ordered that all bail money and securities deposited by the accused be refunded and that all sureties be discharged.
‘The right of appeal within 14 days from today has been explained,’ she said.
Mukweli’s acquittal brings to an end a high-profile trial that has spanned several years, scrutinising internal processes at Post Bank and the broader handling of the multimillion-shilling SAGE project.