KABALE, UGANDA – The Bushuro Parish Chief in Kitumba Subcounty, Kabale District, Mrs. Blessing Mugabi Agaba, has been cleared of any wrongdoing after the Parish Development Model Beneficiaries denied media reports alleging she had taken bribes from them.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!This was during a community meeting convened by the Office of the RDC, which sought to establish facts surrounding the media reports that claimed Mrs. Agaba had solicited bribes ranging from Shs. 100,000 to Shs. 200,000 from locals seeking to benefit from the PDM Program.
The meeting, held in Bushuro Parish, was chaired by Kabale Deputy District Resident Commissioner, Micheal Muramira Kyakashari, accompanied by ARDCs Christmas Turyomurugyendo and Nelson Black Atwongyeire.
In the sensational stories circulating on social media, Kabale-based journalist Mbabazi Vanansio Kakogoso quoted some locals who alleged they had paid bribes to the Parish Chief. However, two of those quoted have publicly disowned the statements published in the media.
Despite having a voice recording, one of the residents, Amos Tumukunde, the Bushuro Cell Secretary for Defence, claimed that the journalist coached him on what to say and that he was under the influence of alcohol when he made the statements.
“Kakogoso met me after I had consumed some alcohol and took advantage of the situation to whisper the words I said for him to record,” Tumukunde explained. He confirmed that he fully received the PDM funds he had applied for, and added that he would never intentionally utter words to damage the Parish Chief’s reputation under normal circumstances.
CUE IN… TUMUKUNDE.
Another resident, Praise Kyomugisha, stated that she had heard her name being read on the radio as a complainant in the PDM scandal involving the Parish Chief. However, she denied having spoken to any journalist. Ms. Kyomugisha confirmed she received the PDM loan of Shs. 1.004 million and stated she did not pay any bribe as alleged in the media.
CUE IN… KYOMUGISHA.
Several locals of Bushuro Parish also accused journalist Kakogoso of harboring personal issues against the Parish Chief, allegedly because she refused to help his wife secure a PDM loan. Kakogoso later apologized to Mrs. Agaba, explaining that he had been misled by residents who subsequently denied having complained against her. He pledged to retract the story he had published.
“I’m sorry, Madam Chief, because I was misled. Now that my sources have denied any complaints, I will withdraw the story. The law requires that I do so, and I will follow through on that,” Kakogoso stated.
CUE IN… KAKOGOSO.
In an emotional speech, Mrs. Blessing Mugabi Agaba, the Bushuro Parish Chief, expressed relief after her name was cleared. Mrs. Agaba who is also the wife of a Reverend serving in the Church of Uganda in the Diocese of Kigezi, said she had served God, the government, and the people of Bushuro with a spotless record, and so, the false media reports had caused her emotional distress.
While accepting Kakogoso’s apology, she urged him to help restore her reputation through the same media platforms he used to tarnish it.
CUE IN… PARISH CHIEF MRS. AGABA.
Meanwhile, DRDC Micheal Muramira Kyakashari declared that the Parish Chief had been cleared of any wrongdoing. He also called on journalist Kakogoso to apologize and withdraw all the articles he published about her. Additionally, he urged the Kabale District Media Practitioners Association to take disciplinary action against the freelance journalist, who is known for sharing his stories with multiple media outlets in Western Uganda.
CUE IN… DR. KYAKASHARI.
The RDC further stated that following the controversial media reports, his office conducted an investigation and found that Bushuro Parish had not registered any issues regarding the performance of government authorities responsible for implementing the PDM program. He described the media reports as a “false alarm” and considered them journalistic errors that should not be repeated.
He appealed to Kabale District’s media fraternity to learn from Kakogoso’s mistake and to always uphold accuracy and objectivity in their reporting, emphasizing the importance of responsible journalism in fulfilling their role as the Fourth Estate.
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