Court forces lawmakers to payback misappropriated COVID-19 funds in Uganda

A high court in Kampala has ordered Members of the Parliament (MP) to refund the sum of $2.4 million they had allocated to themselves initially meant to combat Covid-19 in their constituencies, a local media reported on Wednesday

The funds which were intended to sponsor Covid-19 sensitization across various constituencies was paid into their personal accounts earlier in April.

President Yoweri Museveni has condemned the act as “morally reprehensible” stating that the lawmakers were “falling into a trap”.

Read also: Guinea Bissau PM, three cabinet members test positive for COVID-19

In defense, the MP’s claimed they had intended to buy PPE’s (Personal Protective Equipments) and relief materials with the money they awarded themselves.

“The question is who authorized you to buy for the country?” The President questioned, validating the court’s sanction on the lawmakers to repay or transfer the funds to the national or district Covid-19 taskforces.

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