The rise and fall of Agnes Nandutu

Agnes Nandutu rose from a prominent Ugandan journalist to a government minister, only for her career to collapse in an iron sheets saga, conviction, and prison. This episode traces her journey through the media, politics, and the scandal that led to her dramatic fall from power. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_05 0:40

Agnes Nandutu in court asking for a lineant sentence. This is the New Vision Daily podcast around Uganda. I'm your host, Razia Uthman. Today we bring you an extended documentary, a story of ambition, visibility, power, and consequence. From the newsroom to parliament, from national influence to a prison sentence. This is the rise and fall of Agnes Nandutu.

SPEAKER_08 1:11

Say I am apologetic.

SPEAKER_03 1:17

Agnes Nandutu turned up at the Criminal Investigations Division headquarters in Chibuli and was detained.

SPEAKER_00 1:23

I sympathize with my friend Agnes Nandutu.

SPEAKER_01 1:26

He's a very close friend of mine. There were iron sheets found in the compound of the Honorable Minister Matia Kasaija. Apparently at Oribo Nabanja's compound. All these iron sheets were found in places.

SPEAKER_07 1:37

Agnes Nandutu! NTV.

SPEAKER_05 1:42

Agnes Nandutu was born in Bududa district in eastern Uganda. Raised on the slopes of Mount Elgon, her early life reflected the realities of rural Uganda with community, resilience, and limited opportunity. She famously returned to formal education as an adult. She would later pursue education in journalism and mass communication, setting her on a path that would bring her into living rooms across the country. But beyond the public image, there was also a personal story. Nandutu is a single mother of seven children, a responsibility she often balanced alongside her demanding career in media and politics.

SPEAKER_07 2:27

I have been baptized by fire, but I am firm. And the question that I'm asking is why should Agnes Nandutu be committed to the High Court? When the lower court has the mandate to deal with this?

SPEAKER_05 2:41

Before politics, Agnes Nandutu was a household name in Ugandan journalism. She worked with the National Media Group, contributing to the Daily Monitor, where she rose to become a senior political reporter. But it was her time on television that made her especially visible.

SPEAKER_07 3:00

Should you call Wukenya a disgust?

SPEAKER_06 3:03

We are very disappointed with this government.

SPEAKER_07 3:05

Talk the truth, Honorable! Speak out your mind like Professor Wukenya. Never, never try to do something that can count you. And for sure, Honorable Nabanja will be haunted by her own words.

SPEAKER_06 3:25

The truth is we have not benefited. We are being used like spoons.

SPEAKER_04 3:30

Poem blanca mujidbum.

SPEAKER_05 3:32

Nandutu spent several years at NTV Uganda, where she became known for her sharp political reporting and on-air presence. She was not just covering politics, she was becoming part of the national political conversation.

SPEAKER_07 3:47

While many people in the country saw nothing in me, President Yowe Seven saw something in me and appointed me to be one of the 100 most important or very important persons in this country. And I've done my best to serve this country. Despite the challenges that were there, I would have served even better. But because of the challenges that were there, I did a little, but at least I have left a mark.

SPEAKER_05 4:13

Her influence extended beyond reporting. Nandoto made history as the first female president of the Uganda Parliamentary Press Association to actually benefit from the position, and it's a powerful body representing journalists covering parliament. In that role, she gained direct access to lawmakers, insight into legislative processes, and a network that would later prove politically valuable. Some observers say this position gave her a unique advantage, a front row seat to power before stepping into it herself.

SPEAKER_07 4:54

I will serve the NRM government, I will serve my president in my capacity as the woman member of parliament. As you well know, we are many players in this field. But I've now moved to the bench. It doesn't mean that when you leave the field and you go to the bench, you don't be you don't remain one part of the team. I'm the part of the winning team, the NRM team, and I will cheer them from behind.

SPEAKER_05 5:18

Nandutu also became a familiar voice on the popular political talk show, the People's Parliament. The program brought together local leaders, journalists, and analysts to debate national issues, often holding leaders accountable. It sharpened her public voice, built her confidence, and strengthened her reputation as someone who understood governance. She left journalism and entered elective politics. Running for a flag in the national resistance movement, she failed, but she was later elected woman member of parliament for Bududa District as an independent. It was a smooth transition, perhaps not surprising for someone who had spent years analyzing and reporting about those already in power. By 2021, her political career reached a new peak. She was appointed State Minister for Karamoja Affairs. It was a significant portfolio, tasked with overseeing government support to one of Uganda's most vulnerable regions. Karamoja, long affected by poverty and underdevelopment, depended heavily on government interventions. And among those interventions were iron sheets.

SPEAKER_04 7:06

I'm of the view that the five years prayed for by the state is on the high side, considering that the iron sheets eventually were recovered, though they are no longer new and had been kept somewhere in a certain state. The missing iron sheets have been paid for, and the convict is remorseful.

SPEAKER_05 7:24

The government had procured thousands of iron sheets, their purpose to provide roofing for vulnerable households in Karamoja. But in early 2023, reports began to emerge the iron sheets were not all reaching the intended communities. Instead, they were being diverted. Investigations pointed to senior government officials, and Agnes Andutu was among those named. The allegations were serious. At the heart of the case, whether a public official had abused her office for personal gain at the expense of the vulnerable.

SPEAKER_02 8:01

And she has come to answer some of the allegations that were received, partaking to the theft of iron sheets and abuse of office.

SPEAKER_05 8:15

Public anger grew, pressure mounted, and soon the legal process began. Key moments in the case unfolded over time. 2023, investigations intensify into the iron sheets distributed. Mid-2023, Nandutu is arrested and charged with abuse of office. She's remanded to prison, then later granted bail. As proceedings continue, her bail is revoked, sending her back on remand.

SPEAKER_00 8:50

That is those are some of the issues which we are which we are facing in these corruption cases. People collute and the witnesses are not there, exhibits uh uh uh uh uh damaged, or they are even stolen from from police, and the case collapses.

SPEAKER_05 9:10

Her case was handled by Uganda's anti-corruption court, a court increasingly in the spotlight for high-profile prosecutions.

SPEAKER_04 9:17

The Honorable Agnes Nandutu is here, is hereby sentenced to imprisonment for four years, contrary to section 21.1 of the Anti-Corruption Act. The period that she spent on remand will be deducted from the four years that I have prescribed, and this date runs from the date of conviction.

SPEAKER_05 9:43

2,000 pieces of iron sheets. As the trial progressed, the courtroom became the stage for her fate. The presiding judge, Justice Jane Okuo Kajuga, who would ultimately deliver the verdict. During mitigation, Agnes Nandutu made a personal appeal. She asked the court for lenience. She spoke as a mother, a single parent of seven children, a woman who had served in public office. But the court weighed her plea against the gravity of the offense. Her sentence, four years in prison and a 10-year ban from holding public office. The court emphasized accountability, particularly where public resources meant for vulnerable citizens are concerned.

SPEAKER_04 11:21

All the iron sheets that were recovered, there are 1,585 as per the count of court on the 9th of August 2024, shall be returned to the office of the Prime Minister to which they belong. 3. I issue an order that bars the convict from holding any public office for 10 years from the date of her conviction. I hereby order that any amounts that she deposited for bail is hereby refunded because bail has now served its purpose. All the sureties that stood for her are accordingly discharged, and any securities that were deposited for her bail are to be returned.

SPEAKER_05 12:15

Following sentencing, she was taken into custody to begin serving her sentence. She's now held at Luzera Prison in Kampala. From television studios to parliamentary chambers to cabinet office and now to incarceration.

SPEAKER_04 12:38

Is here is hereby sentenced to imprisonment for four years?

SPEAKER_05 12:44

A bold female journalist, a political insider, a cabinet minister, and now a convicted public official, it raises questions that go beyond one individual. Does proximity to power make accountability harder or more necessary? Are anti-corruption efforts gaining strength? And what lessons should future leaders take from this fall? For Agnes Nanduto, the journey has been dramatic. A rise built on visibility and influence, a fall marked by scandal and conviction. Her story now stands as both a warning and a reflection of the times. You've been listening to the New Vision Daily podcast around Uganda, and this has been the rise and fall of Agnes Nanduti. Thanks for listening.

SPEAKER_04 13:34

Any amounts that she deposited for bail is hereby refunded because bail has now served its purpose. All the sureties that stood for her are accordingly discharged, and any securities that were deposited for her bail are to be returned.