Former UPPC Director Goes Missing, Shillings 2.2 Billion Unaccounted For

Prof. Tom Davis Wasswa: From Printing Press to Pressing Problems

The Nakasero-based Anti-Corruption Court has issued a warrant for the arrest of former Uganda Printing and Publishing Corporation (UPPC) director, Prof. Tom Davis Wasswa. This isn’t your ordinary warrant – it’s for allegedly causing a financial loss of a staggering shillings 2.2 billion.

Principal Grade One Magistrate Christopher Opit must have been feeling like the lead character in a detective novel when he issued the warrant on February 20, 2024.

According to Chief State Attorney Gloria Inzikuru from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), Wasswa has apparently pulled a disappearing act worthy of Houdini himself. Inzikuru informed the court that Wasswa had absconded his trial faster than a chicken escaping from a butcher’s knife.

“Your worship, the accused person has absconded his trial, prosecution prays for a warrant of arrest,” Inzikuru solemnly declared, as if she were reciting lines from a Shakespearean tragedy.

Prosecution claims that they’ve been trying to track down Wasswa since last year, but he’s been as elusive as a Ugandan horse. Not a peep from him – no phone calls, no smoke signals, nothing. It’s like he’s vanished into thin air, taking shillings 2.2 billion with him.

So, what’s the deal with all this money disappearing into the abyss? Well, it all goes back to a contract between UPPC and the Electoral Commission (EC) to print and publish polling materials for the general elections. You’d think printing ballots would be a straightforward affair, but alas, it seems like someone’s been playing fast and loose with the cash.

The prosecution alleges that out of the shillings 15 billion transferred by the EC, a hefty chunk of it went missing – shillings 2.2 billion, to be exact. That’s enough money to make even the richest Ugandan politician do a double-take. Where did it all go? Nobody knows, but one thing’s for sure – it’s not in the UPPC’s bank account.

Magistrate Opit didn’t mince words when he issued the arrest warrant. He basically gave the green light for any police officer with a badge and a pulse to go out there and hunt down Wasswa like he’s the last piece of Rolex at a street food festival.

“In light of the circumstances, a warrant of arrest is hereby issued for the accused person,” declared Magistrate Opit, his voice echoing through the courtroom like the thunderous roar of Murchison Falls.

So, there you have it – another day, another scandal in the land of Ugandan bureaucracy. Let’s just hope they catch Wasswa before he pulls off the greatest disappearing act in Ugandan history