Court summons Balunywa over forged papers

Jun 12, 2014

Nakawa Court Chief Magistrate Emmanuel Baguma summons MUBS Principal Wasswa Balunywa over forgery of academic documents

By Petride Mudoola
 

Nakawa Court Chief Magistrate Emmanuel Baguma on Wednesday summoned Makerere University Business School (MUBS) principal Wasswa Balunywa to appear in court on June 18 this year to answer charges of forgery of academic documents, uttering false documents, embezzlement and failure to execute duties of an accounting officer.

Prosecution led by Simon Tendo Kabenge alleges that Balunywa used different pseudo names of Wasswa Balunywa, Balunywa Juma Wasswa, Juma Balunywa, J Balunywa and Juma Wasswa Balunywa on different academic documents he purports to be his when he applied for the job of a lecturer at Makerere University and when he applied to become MUBS principal.

According to prosecution, Balunywa, who has lectured at Makerere University since 1983, knowingly and with intent to defraud Government uttered false documents to procure promotion to the rank of associate professor in order to receive higher salaries.

Balunywa is further accused of authorizing expenditure of sh32m for the medical treatment of his mother in India causing a financial loss to Government.

Balunywa is also accused of flouting procurement procedures when he contracted his personal enterprise Maya farm to supply pineapples, eggs and potatoes to MUBS.

He was expected to appear before the court yesterday following summons issued on May 19th 2014. The summons was issued based on a private prosecution complaint filed by the Executive Director Legal Brains Trust Isaac Kimeze Semakaddde.
 

He however, did not report to court, prompting the prosecuition to apply for a warrant of arrest.

To counter the prosecution, Balunywa's lawyer Terence Kavuma, told court that it was the first time the matter was coming up and that he had shown up on behalf of the accused. "I pray that court grants us another day so that my client can appear and answer the charges against him," he pleaded to court.
 

Baguma, ruled that, "Since the accused's lawyer has bothered to come and represent his client, court is reluctant to issue the warrant of arrest basing on the fact that the attorney of the accused person has explained why his client is not in court."
 

He set June 18 for Balunywa to appear before court.
 

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