MITOOMA, Uganda — Several senior officials in Mitooma District have been arrested over allegations of selling government jobs and extorting money from applicants during ongoing local government recruitment exercises.
The arrests were carried out on Thursday afternoon by the State House Anti-Corruption Unit in collaboration with the Uganda Police Force in Mitooma.
Those arrested include the Chief Administrative Officer, Nakityo Joanita; the District Health Officer, Mugisha Sadic; the Chairperson of the District Service Commission, Tugume Sam Karakuza; and the Senior Education Officer, Nabimanya Richard. Authorities say other suspects are still on the run.
Preliminary investigations indicate that Nakityo allegedly interfered with the operations of the District Service Commission by assuming roles reserved for the commission, including scheduling interviews and selecting technical advisors. She is also accused of influencing the scoring of candidates through the commission chairperson.
Investigators further allege that Tugume extorted between UGX 7 million and UGX 25 million from at least 23 job applicants, promising them employment opportunities in the ongoing recruitment exercise.
Meanwhile, Mugisha is accused of engaging in influence peddling to ensure certain candidates were shortlisted and awarded unusually high interview scores, with two candidates reportedly scoring 48 out of 50. He is also alleged to have leaked interview questions and answers to selected applicants, giving them an unfair advantage.
Nabimanya, the Senior Education Officer, is said to have contacted the District Service Commission chairperson to lobby for favorable assessments for some education officers during the interview process.
Authorities have also named Owarimpa Esther as a suspect who is currently on the run. She is accused of extorting money from job seekers while falsely assuring them of guaranteed employment.
Investigations into the alleged corruption scheme are still ongoing, and officials say the suspects are likely to face corruption-related charges in the coming days.
The public has been urged to report any cases of extortion or bribery during recruitment processes to the relevant authorities.
