The Supreme Court, which is the highest court in the land has cancelled the bail given to former National Social Security Fund (NSSF), managing director, David Chandi Jamwa and returned him to Luzira to serve his 12 year sentence.
In January 2018, the Court of Appeal quashed an application in which Jamwa was challenging his 12-year sentence handed him by the Anti -Corruption Court in 2010 after being convicted of causing a financial loss of 3.1 billion to government prompting him to run to the Supreme Court to overturn the same.
He was also granted bail by the Supreme Court pending the decision of the court.
On Friday, in a majority decision of three to two, justices of the Supreme Court including Eldad Mwangusya, Lillian Tibatemwa and Paul Mugamba dismissed his application that they said had no merit.
“We find the appellant’s sentence of 12 years imprisonment for causing financial loss contrary to section 20 of the Anti -Corruption Act imposed by the trial court and confirmed by the Court of Appeal a legal sentence,” the court ruled.
The judges noted that after reevaluation of the mitigating factors for Jamwa, they had found that the Court of Appeal didn’t make any error in upholding the sentence as given to the former NSSF Managing Director.
Jamwa’s lawyers had faulted the Court of Appeal for failure to consider his submissions in regards the severity and harshness of the 12 year sentence handed to him and wanted the Supreme Court to overturn it but in response, the highest court in the land said he has no right to appeal against the severity of the punishment given to him.
The Friday judgment means Jamwa will now serve the 12-year sentence handed to him by the Anti-Corruption Court’s Justice John Bosco Katutsi in 2010.
In 2010, the Anti-Corruption Court found Jamwa guilty of causing financial loss to government for having sold NSSF bonds to the now defunct Crane Bank before their maturity dates, causing a financial loss of three billion shillings to NSSF.
In his ruling, Justice John Bosco Katutsi also barred Jamwa from holding any public office for 10 years, a sentence he has since challenged in the court of appeal.
Evidence by the Inspector General of Government indicated that between September and November 2007 being employed in NSSF, a public body in the capacity of managing director,Jamwa sold off several government bonds held by NSSF before their maturity dates to Crane Bank at prices below their then discounted value thereby causing an unfavourable price variance of shs3.1 billion.
The IGG contended that Jamwa knew or had reason to believe that his actions would cause financial loss to the fund.
Court throws out former NSSF boss Jamwa’s appeal against 12 year sentence
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