The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Jane Frances Abodo has ordered that the suspects behind the demolition of St. Peter’s Church Ndeeba in Kampala, should be charged afresh before the Anti-Corruption Court for Abuse of Office, Corruption and Disobedience of Presidential Directives on the spread of COVID -19 Pandemic.
This was Ms Abodo’s directive to Makindye Court Chief Magistrate Prossy Katushabe where the suspects that include Senior Police Officers, KCCA Physical Planners, Ivan Katongole and Naika Richard, a Businessman Dodoviko Mwanjje and Casual Labourers had appeared for mention their case on previous charges of Theft, Conspiracy to Commit a Felony and Disobedience of Lawful Orders only to be slapped with an amended charge sheet requiring them to appear before the Anti-Corruption Court in Kololo -Kampala.
The DPP says that the accused Police Officers in abuse of the authority of their offices neglected to perform their duty of preventing the demolition of St. Peter’s Church in Ndeeba as per directives from their Superiors.
However, the DPP has cleared Katwe Police DPC David Epedu of any wrong doing and the Court has now discharged him (freed).
Katongole Ivan the KCCA physical planner is said to have issued a demolition permit for St. Peter’s Church Ndeeba which was in total abuse of his authority as building regulations were circumvented while Dodoviko Mwanjje who claims to have bought the land on which the said Church was situate is accused of conspiring with Katongole and the Police Officers to unlawfully demolish the church and steal its property with 85 million shillings.
The two together with other suspects are further accused of having gathered in large numbers at St Peter’s Church Ndeeba well knowing that it may cause the spread of an infectious disease and in contravention of the presidential directives on the spread of COVID-19 Pandemic.
Magistrate Katushabe has now forwarded their case file to the Anti-Corruption Division of the Magistrate Court in Kololo Kampala.
