Court bars Kabafunzaki from travelling abroad for treatment  

COURT|CORRUPTION|MINISTER|CRIME

KAMPALA - The Anti-Corruption Court has declined to grant former labour state minister, Herbert Kabafunzaki permission to travel abroad for specialised treatment.

Kabafunzaki had requested the court presided over by Justice Margaret Tibulya to permit him to travel on medical grounds (ailment not mentioned) but the judge declined.

However, the  Judge, Tuesday (October 6, 2020), directed the state prosecutor, Barbra Kawuma, to look for a medical specialist from Mulago hospital to examine Kabafunzaki and furnish the court with a report before October 22.

Kawuma informed the court that she wrote to the executive director, Mulago Referral Hospital, requesting a specialist to examine Kabafunzaki.

"I contacted the specialist, who said he would contact us. I even spoke to him today morning and he said he was in Covid-19 crisis meeting," she told the court.

The state has agreed to work with the defence team led by Evans Ochieng to have the examination done in two weeks.

Kabafunzaki, who did not appear in court, is expected to start his defence after the court recently ruled that he has a case to answer.

Kabafunzaki, his personal assistant, Brian Mugabo and Bruce Lubowa, who is still at large, are accused of soliciting and receiving sh5m bribe from AYA Investment boss, Mohammed Hamid in a bid to clear his name over alleged sexual harassment of his former female employee.

Hamid claims he was being framed by the employee (name withheld), whom he had fired for attempting to steal $10,000 (about sh37m) from the company.

On April 8, 2017, the trio was arrested at Kampala Serena Hotel for purportedly receiving a sh5m bribe as partial payment for the sh15m they had reportedly solicited from Hamid.

On April 12, 2017, Kabafunzaki with his co-accused were charged with two counts of corruption in breach of Section 2 and 26 of the Anti-Corruption Act 2009.

According to the Act, any person convicted of an offence of corruption is liable to a term of imprisonment not exceeding ten years or a fine not exceeding two hundred and forty currency points (sh4.8m) or both.

The minister and Lubowa also face charges of conspiracy to commit a felony, where it is alleged that between April 6 and 8 in Kampala, they solicited sh15m from Hamid.