GREEN LIGHT: Anti-Corruption Court Revives Shs3.8 Billion Scandal Involving Ex-PS Geraldine Ssali

KAMPALA — The Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court has summoned the former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Cooperatives, Ms. Geraldine Ssali Busuulwa, to appear tomorrow, June 17, 2026.

The summons marks the formal revival of the high-profile Shs3.8 billion Buyaka Growers Cooperative Society compensation trial.

The case, which is set for mention at 9:00 a.m. before Lady Justice Jane Okuo Kajuga at the Nakasero-based court, resumes after a definitive Constitutional Court ruling cleared major legal hurdles that had kept the trial in limbo for over a year.

All co-accused individuals have been explicitly warned that court proceedings may go ahead in their absence should they fail to appear.

The Core Allegations Against Geraldine Ssali

As the accounting officer at the ministry when the transactions took place, Ssali is the central figure in the investigation. The state’s prosecution team contends that she willfully abused her office and caused financial loss through a series of irregular administrative maneuvers:


The prosecution asserts that this bypass was completely arbitrary, highly prejudicial to the interests of the Ministry of Trade, and executed in flagrant violation of the 2017 Treasury Instructions.

The Full Roster of the Accused

The state has arrayed a powerful group of co-accused individuals alongside Ssali, spanning the legislature, the legal fraternity, and the civil service:

• Hon. Michael Mawanda Maranga: Igara East MP and PLU Mobilization Director (Accused of receiving Shs1 billion of the funds to settle third-party creditors).

• Hon. Ignatius Mudimi Wamakuyu: Elgon County MP.

• Hon. Paul Akamba: Busiki County MP.

• Julius Taitankoko Kirya: Managing partner at Kirya and Company Advocates.

• Leonard Kavundira: Principal Cooperative Officer at the Ministry of Trade.

The suspects face a combination of severe criminal charges, including Abuse of Office, Conspiracy to Defraud, Causing Financial Loss to Government, and Money Laundering.

Why the Case Stalled (And Why It’s Resuming Now)

The trial had been completely paralyzed after MP Paul Akamba filed a constitutional petition. Akamba argued that his human rights were severely violated during his arrest by security operatives, invoking provisions of the Human Rights (Enforcement) Act to seek a total dismissal of his corruption charges without undergoing a full trial.

However, a landmark decision by the Constitutional Court completely shattered this legal defense strategy. The coram of judges struck down the specific clauses of the Act that allowed for automatic acquittals in rights violation cases, ruling that:

• Criminal proceedings must strike a balance between an accused person’s rights and society’s right to justice.

• Automatically terminating corruption trials denies the public and the victims of fraud an opportunity to be heard.

• Allegations of human rights violations during enforcement must be handled separately and cannot be used as a blanket shield to escape an investigation on its merits.

With this constitutional roadblock removed, Justice Jane Okuo Kajuga is now moving swiftly to put the prosecution back on track.

The Broader Systemic Impact

The Buyaka Cooperative case highlights a persistent vulnerability within Uganda’s decentralized and specialized compensation funds. Between the 2016/17 and 2022/23 financial years, the government processed a massive Shs137.86 billion through the Ministry of Trade to revamp cooperatives affected by past liberation wars.

Anti-corruption watchdogs have repeatedly warned that transferring verification powers away from the Ministry of Justice to ad-hoc internal committees—like the one established during Ssali’s tenure—opened the door for trusted insiders and politicians to divert funds meant for genuine war-loss victims.

For the justice system to restore public faith, this trial must serve as a blueprint for institutional accountability. Securing systemic safeguards, mandating secondary independent verifications for supplementary payouts, and ensuring strict asset recovery protocols are the only ways to ensure public funds are permanently protected.