Businessman Robert Kabonero to face State House anti graft unit over MP Rukaari arrest
KAMPALA —The State House Anti Corruption Unit (SH-ACU) has Tuesday evening confirmed receiving a petition from Mbarara City North Member of Parliament, Robert Rukaari Mwesigwa, alleging the involvement of city businessman Robert Kabonero in his arrest two weeks ago.
Speaking to this website in a phone conversation, Ms Natasha Mariam Oduka, the spokesperson of the State House’s Anti-Corruption Unit said they received the petition on Friday.
In the letter, a copy of which the website has seen, Mr Mwesigwa, who doubles as the ruling NRM party chairman of the Entrepreneurs League, alleges that Kabonero, a prominent Kampala businessman worked with a controversial court bailiff Moses Kirunda to effect his arrest.
“I am in receipt of information including confessions, that Mr Robert Kabonero continuously called Moses Kirunda to orchestrate my arrest and detention, intentionally to annoy, embarrass and ridicule my person as a Member of Parliament,” Mr Mwesigwa’s letter reads in part.
“My appeal to you is to establish the criminal intention of the person in question and whether the state-engineered my arrest and incarceration to Luzira when the Judgment Credito had security against the debt with an estimated value of Shs3.8 billion,” Mwesigwa’s petition further reads.
The petition is an addendum to an earlier complaint which the MP filed at the SH-ACU. Rukaari last week petitioned the State House Anti-Corruption Unit, protesting the manner in which he was arrested and sent to Luzura prison an outstanding debt of about Shs702m.
The MP in his petition claims the manner in which he was arrested was demeaning of him as a legislator, which high-handedness, he wants the anti-graft unit to investigate and punish those found culpable.
“This is to register my complaint against various government officials that include ASP Mukiibi Karim and another, court bailiff Moses Kirunda and assistant registrars of the Commercial Court….”
The legislator was arrested on March 1 after the court issued an arrest warrant over his alleged failure to pay the business debt. He however clarifies that this was an arrangement with his business partner Gerald Kalungi, which did not warrant state involvement.
At the weekend, the MP was seen in a video with tycoon Godfrey Kirumira, the father of Mr Kalungi during the funeral of Justice Kakuru.
Mr Kirumira is filmed condemning the high handedness of his lawyers, who he said took unnecessary steps to arrest the MP.
Mr Kirumira apologized to the MP, who he says is his longtime business partner.
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