Katto sent to Luzira
THINKING HARD: Katto at the court in Kampala before he was remanded
By Hillary Kiirya
Businessman and former rally ace Emmanuel Katto was yesterday charged and remanded in Luzira Prisons for offering a US $800,000 (sh1.3b) bribe to a senior government official.
It was 18 days after a criminal summons was issued for him while he was on a business trip to the UK.
Katto’s charges are only bailable by the High Court. A lower court can grant him bail but only after four months before the trial.
Wearing a blue-stripped short-sleeved shirt and a dark blue pair of trousers, the composed 46-year Katto was at the Buganda Road Court at 8:30am. His two brothers Patrick and John, sister Nyakato and sympathisers accompanied him to court.
His long-time lawyer, Bob Kasango of Hall and Partners of Uganda, represented him. The charges were read to him at 9:10am by Chief Magistrate Margaret Tibulya.
Asked by Tibulya whether he understood the charges, Katto said, “Yes, I have understood but it is not true.”
< BR>She remanded him until March 9, when the case comes up for mention.
Katto resumed his seat in the courtroom as he waited for the Police to take him to the cells. It was not established how he made it to Luzira since he did not use the official transport.
Prosecutor Jane Kajuga said Katto, a resident of Ntinda, between 1996 and 1998 in Kampala and Gulu districts, wanted to supply four Mi24 helicopters to the Ministry of Defence.
He said Katto offered the bribe to Lt Gen Salim Saleh through his Consolidated Sales Corporation company.
Kajuga said Saleh was then a special adviser to President Yoweri Museveni on military and political affairs for northern Uganda. Kajuga said Katto offered Saleh the money to influence him to award the deal to him.
Yesterday, Katto’s lawyer, along with his brother Patrick, tried in vain to get bail for him. They secured the court proceedings from the court but failed to get the court to fix the hearing date. Kasango said it was too late to have the bail application fixed for hearing yesterday.
The DPP on December 23, 2004 recommended that Katto be charged with attempting to corrupt Saleh. He, however, exonerated Saleh despite recommendations against it by Justice Ssebutinde. The DPP said Saleh would be a prosecution witness.
EndsPublished on: Thursday, 24th February, 2005
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