ROKO chief charged over tax
Aug 20, 2009
THE managing director of ROKO Construction Company, Dragomir Lakic, was yesterday charged with 21 offences of tax evasion that resulted in the alleged loss of over sh24b to the Uganda Revenue Authority.
By Charles Ariko
THE managing director of ROKO Construction Company, Dragomir Lakic, was yesterday charged with 21 offences of tax evasion that resulted in the alleged loss of over sh24b to the Uganda Revenue Authority.
Lakic becomes the third top ROKO manager to be charged with the offences said to have been committed over a period of eight years at ROKO head office in Kawempe.
Lakic yesterday denied all the charges when he appeared before the Nakawa court Chief Magistrate, Deo Sejjemba.
Lakic, a Yugoslav national, is jointly charged with the general manager, Brigitte Koehler, and the administrative officer, Mark Koehler, who appeared before the same court on August 11 on similar charges.
The three managers allegedly evaded taxes by fraudulently making false statements to the URA.
Peter Muliisa, the URA manager in charge of prosecution, said Lakic and the Koehlers evaded paying taxes amounting to sh3.3b in Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE), corporation tax of sh14b and VAT of sh4.7b.
If convicted, the accused face a fine, imprisonment and could be ordered to pay the taxes.
ROKO is a leading construction company in Uganda and has carried out a number of big projects, including Workers’ House and the Uganda Catholic Martyrs Shrine in Namugongo, which was its pioneer project in the late 1960s.
Lakic was granted bail of sh1m and his two sureties, Frances Kigozi, a procurement officer with ROKO, and Jim Okello, a senior engineer with ROKO, were each bonded for a sum of sh4m not cash.
On Monday, ROKO ran a press notice stating that there was an interim order issued by the High Court in relation to the current charges its managers are facing.
But Muliisa yesterday said the court order does not stop URA from proceeding with the prosecution of the managers.
THE managing director of ROKO Construction Company, Dragomir Lakic, was yesterday charged with 21 offences of tax evasion that resulted in the alleged loss of over sh24b to the Uganda Revenue Authority.
Lakic becomes the third top ROKO manager to be charged with the offences said to have been committed over a period of eight years at ROKO head office in Kawempe.
Lakic yesterday denied all the charges when he appeared before the Nakawa court Chief Magistrate, Deo Sejjemba.
Lakic, a Yugoslav national, is jointly charged with the general manager, Brigitte Koehler, and the administrative officer, Mark Koehler, who appeared before the same court on August 11 on similar charges.
The three managers allegedly evaded taxes by fraudulently making false statements to the URA.
Peter Muliisa, the URA manager in charge of prosecution, said Lakic and the Koehlers evaded paying taxes amounting to sh3.3b in Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE), corporation tax of sh14b and VAT of sh4.7b.
If convicted, the accused face a fine, imprisonment and could be ordered to pay the taxes.
ROKO is a leading construction company in Uganda and has carried out a number of big projects, including Workers’ House and the Uganda Catholic Martyrs Shrine in Namugongo, which was its pioneer project in the late 1960s.
Lakic was granted bail of sh1m and his two sureties, Frances Kigozi, a procurement officer with ROKO, and Jim Okello, a senior engineer with ROKO, were each bonded for a sum of sh4m not cash.
On Monday, ROKO ran a press notice stating that there was an interim order issued by the High Court in relation to the current charges its managers are facing.
But Muliisa yesterday said the court order does not stop URA from proceeding with the prosecution of the managers.