The Police in Ssezibwa Region are hunting for the wife of the mayor for allegedly stealing money meant for the older persons’ group. According to Ssezibwa Region Police spokesperson, Hellen Butoto, the Community Development Officer for Lugazi Municipality, Ruth Nahone Asea, purportedly solicited for sh500,000 from the members of Kabula Diary Elders Group out of the sh5m they had received from the elder persons’ program which falls under the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development.
Nahone is charged with abuse of office and demanding money by menancy which occurred on June 30, 2023 at 12:30pm. Nahone is the wife of the current mayor of Lugazi Municipality, John Bosco Asea Anzuma.
It is alleged that Kabula Diary Elders Group which was registered in March 2023 under the office of Lugazi Municipality Community Development Officer picked interest in dairy farming towards the elderly people’s initiative, which follows under the Ministry of gender.
“However, on the June 26, 2023 Five Million Shillings were deposited to the group account in Finance Trust Bank and on the June 17, the CDO Nahone Ruth Asea rang the chairman of the group, Stephen Offono, informing him about the money which had been deposited on their group account. Nahone also invited Offono to her office for a meeting,” Butoto revealed.
The Ssezibwa Region Police’s mouthpiece, Butoto added that on June 29, the CDO Nahone called Offono again asking him to withdraw the money and remit the sh500,000 to her office.
In a statement Offono made to police, he said that Nahone directed him to take the sh500,000 to her office and that even when she was not there, he should leave it with her secretary, called Grace.
“Nahome kept on making several phone calls pestering me for the money until I got fed up. I decided to report the matter to the Police,” Offono said.
Butoto said that Police worked with Offono to have Nahone arrested after giving him exhibited money amounting to sh500,000.
“Unfortunately, Nahone was not found in the office but the money was given to her secretary as she had directed. The secretary, Grace Laso Magero was arrested and she is currently detained at Lugazu Central Police Station,” she said.
She said that Police are hunting for Nahone who is on the run as the investigations into the matter commenced. Efforts to reach Nahone for a comment were futile as her official mobile lines were off.