The Anti-Corruption Court has convicted Ateng Francis, the former Principal Assistant Secretary at the Ministry of Lands, Lira Zonal Office, on eleven counts of corruption-related offenses, including abuse of office, fraudulent procurement of a title, forgery, uttering false documents, and conspiracy to commit a felony.
Ateng was remanded until November 7, 2025, when he will return to court for sentencing.
According to the prosecution, between January and December 2018, while serving at the Ministry of Lands’ Zonal Office in Lira District, Ateng, together with others, abused his office and authority with the intent to defraud Uganda Railways Corporation (URC) of its land.
He reportedly facilitated the issuance of a special certificate of title, oversaw the subdivision and allocation of the land, and identified brokers who sold the parcels to private individuals, all without following the legal procedures for the disposal of government property.
Investigations revealed that Ateng and his co-accused also forged the signature of the then URC Managing Director, which they used on falsified documents to transfer and sell the land unlawfully.
One of the co-accused, Ocen Joseph, had earlier pleaded guilty to similar charges and was handed a two-year custodial sentence.
The conviction follows a directive issued by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in 2022, instructing the State House Anti-Corruption Unit , working in collaboration with the Criminal Investigations Directorate and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions , to investigate and prosecute individuals implicated in attempts to fraudulently sell assets belonging to Uganda Railways Corporation.
The case marks a significant milestone in ongoing efforts to combat corruption and protect public property from fraudulent dealings within government institutions.
