The Anti-Corruption State House Unit, in collaboration with the Uganda Police in Mitooma, on Thursday arrested several officials from Mitooma District for allegedly selling government jobs and extorting money from applicants during recent and ongoing Local Government recruitment exercises.
The arrested officials include Joanita Nakityo, the Chief Administrative Officer; Sadic Mugisha, the District Health Officer; Sam Karakuza Tugume, Chairperson of the District Service Commission; and Richard Nabimanya, Senior Education Officer. Other suspects remain at large.
Investigations reveal that Joanita Nakityo repeatedly interfered with the functions of the District Service Commission by taking over responsibilities such as scheduling interviews and selecting technical advisors for the commission.
Nakityio also allegedly influenced the scoring of candidates through Sam Karakuza Tugume, who is accused of extorting amounts ranging from Shs 7 million to Shs 25 million from 23 candidates in exchange for job assurances.
Sadic Mugisha reportedly engaged in influence peddling to ensure specific candidates were included and scored highly during assessments, with two candidates receiving a score of 48 out of 50. He is also accused of leaking interview questions and answers to certain applicants to provide them with an unfair advantage.
Richard Nabimanya is alleged to have contacted the Chairperson of the District Service
Commission to secure favorable assessments for some education officers during interviews.
Other suspects still on the run include Esther Owarimpa, Parish Chief and LC3 Councillor of Kashenshero Sub-county, Mitooma District, who allegedly extorted money from applicants with false promises of employment.
Investigations are ongoing, and authorities have indicated that corruption charges are expected to be levied against the suspects in the coming days.
The public is urged to report any incidents of extortion during recruitment to the relevant authorities.
