Kampala, Uganda: Parliament Director of Communications and Public Affairs Chris Ariko Obore and six other senior Parliament officials have been committed to the High Court for trial over corruption-related charges arising from an alleged Shs27.2 billion financial loss to Government.
The seven officials, who have been on remand at Luzira Prison since their arrest in July, were committed on Monday by Grade One Magistrate Esther Asiimwe after prosecutors from the Inspectorate of Government (IG) presented an indictment containing additional charges arising from new evidence.
The officials committed to the High Court are Obore, Director of Human Resource Daniel Adilo, Executive Secretary in the Office of the Speaker Leonard Okema, Principal Research Officer Rajab Kaaya Ssemalulu, Principal Protocol Officer Emmanuel Emuron Okwi, Capacity Development Officer Vincent Otebata and Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Parliamentary Cooperative Savings and Credit Society Ltd (Parliament SACCO), Methods Murebe.
Stella Itute, an Office Supervisor in the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms, who is jointly charged with the group, was not included in the indictment because she remains at large.
The committal follows a case that has been moving through the Anti-Corruption Court since July 2, when the seven officials were arrested by the IG and arraigned before Magistrate Asiimwe.
Background to the case
The officials were arrested on July 2 after being summoned to the IG offices to record additional statements as part of investigations into alleged misuse of parliamentary funds.
They appeared before the Anti-Corruption Court the same day and were charged with embezzlement, causing financial loss to Government and money laundering before being remanded to Luzira Prison.
However, the Anti-Corruption Court did not take their plea on the money-laundering charges because the offence falls within the jurisdiction of the High Court.
The IG said the alleged offences were committed between 2023 and May 2026 while the accused were serving in their respective positions at Parliament.
According to the prosecution, the officials allegedly accessed funds meant for parliamentary donations and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities and failed to implement the intended activities, resulting in an alleged financial loss of Shs27.201 billion to Government.
The charge sheet contains separate allegations against individual officials.
Obore is accused of allegedly embezzling Shs5.253 billion between 2023 and May 2026, money prosecutors say came into his possession by virtue of his position as Director of Communications and Public Affairs.
Adilo, the Director of Human Resource, is accused of allegedly embezzling Shs14.608 billion, the largest individual amount cited in the case.
Okema, the Executive Secretary in the Office of the Speaker, is accused of allegedly embezzling Shs3.489 billion, while Rajab Kaaya Ssemalulu, the Principal Research Officer, is accused of allegedly embezzling Shs2.170 billion.
Otebata, the Capacity Development Officer, is accused of allegedly embezzling Shs5.253 billion.
Okwi, the Principal Protocol Officer, is accused of allegedly embezzling about Shs1.1 billion. The latest indictment additionally brings a money-laundering charge against him, according to the information presented in court on Monday.
Itute, who remains at large, is separately accused of allegedly embezzling Shs75 million.
State prosecution alleges that the money was accessed by the accused through their official positions.
The individual embezzlement allegations should, however, be distinguished from the separate prosecution allegation that the handling of funds intended for parliamentary donations and CSR activities caused an overall Shs27.201 billion financial loss to Government.
Money-laundering allegations
The case took a more serious legal turn because of the money-laundering allegations.
Prosecutors allege that between January 2023 and April 2026, Obore, Adilo, Okema, Kaaya Ssemalulu, Otebata and Murebe processed, approved and received Shs10.893 billion, knowing or having reason to believe that the money constituted proceeds of crime.
The money-laundering allegations are brought under the Anti-Money Laundering Act, while the embezzlement and causing financial loss charges arise under the Anti-Corruption Act.
Because money laundering is triable by the High Court, Magistrate Asiimwe previously declined to entertain the accused persons’ bail applications in relation to those charges, leaving the High Court to handle the matter. The Inspectorate of Government also confirmed at the initial stage that the accused would have to take plea before the High Court because the Anti-Corruption Court lacks jurisdiction over money-laundering offences.
The case took another turn on July 27 when the Anti-Corruption Court issued an arrest warrant for Itute after prosecutors said they had failed to trace her. The court ordered that she be arrested and produced before it on August 10.
The seven officials, meanwhile, remained on remand at Luzira.
The High Court had also scheduled September 9, 2026, to deliver a consolidated ruling on the bail applications filed by the officials.
What Monday’s committal means
Monday’s committal moves the substantive criminal case from the Magistrates Court to the High Court, where the accused will face trial on the charges falling within that court’s jurisdiction.
Following the committal, court directed the prosecution and defence teams to appear before the Registrar of the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court on August 18, 2026, for the mention of the case.
The High Court will subsequently deal with the case in accordance with the criminal trial process, including the outstanding bail proceedings and eventual hearing of the prosecution’s evidence.
The seven officials have not been convicted of the offences. The allegations remain matters for determination by the courts, and the accused are presumed innocent until proved guilty.
The case has attracted significant attention because it involves senior officials at Parliament and allegations concerning the management of public funds within the institution.
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