Former Minister Agnes Nandutu Jailed 4 Years Over Karamoja Iron Sheets Scandal
The Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court has sentenced former Karamoja Affairs minister and Bududa District Woman MP Agnes Nandutu to four years in prison for illegally acquiring and possessing government iron sheets meant for vulnerable communities in Karamoja.
Delivering the ruling on Friday, trial judge Jane Okuo ordered that the time Nandutu previously spent on remand be deducted from her sentence. The court also barred her from holding public office for ten years, citing the gravity of the offence and findings from an offence impact assessment report.
Additionally, the court directed that all recovered iron sheets be returned to the government.
Emotional Plea Rejected
Before sentencing, Nandutu made an emotional appeal, asking for forgiveness from the people of Karamoja, the President, and her constituents.
“I would like to express my remorse to the people of Karamoja and the appointing authority. Please forgive me,” she told court.
She requested a non-custodial sentence, citing deteriorating health conditions, including lung complications, as well as her responsibilities as a single mother of seven and caregiver to her 81-year-old mother.
Nandutu also told court she had returned the iron sheets and compensated for those that were missing, urging the judge to consider her efforts in mitigation.
However, prosecutors from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions opposed leniency, arguing that she retained the iron sheets for nine months—evidence, they said, of premeditation. They added that the materials were only returned after police intervention and pushed for a minimum sentence of five years.
Conviction and Case Details
On April 8, 2026, Justice Okuo convicted Nandutu of dealing with suspect property contrary to Section 21A(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act.
Court proceedings revealed that between June and July 2022, Nandutu received and kept 2,000 pre-painted iron sheets marked “Office of the Prime Minister,” knowing or having reason to believe they had been irregularly obtained from a government programme.
The iron sheets were part of a larger consignment procured under a supplementary budget of approximately Shs39.94 billion during the 2021/2022 financial year. The programme was intended to support disarmament and community empowerment efforts in the Karamoja sub-region.
Evidence presented in court showed that although 95,044 iron sheets had been procured and stored in Namanve, discrepancies emerged after a requisition of 10,000 sheets for a presidential event in Moroto District resulted in only 1,000 being officially issued.
According to the prosecution, Nandutu was informed that 2,000 sheets had been allocated to her, allegedly for landslide victims. She accepted the allocation and facilitated their collection.
On June 23, 2022, she reportedly provided transport funds and instructed her political assistant to pick up the iron sheets from the Office of the Prime Minister stores. The consignment was first delivered to a private residence in Wakiso District before being transferred to her home in Seeta.
Investigations in March 2023 led authorities to recover 1,617 iron sheets from her farm, leaving 383 sheets unaccounted for.
Court’s Final Position
The court concluded that Nandutu knowingly received and retained government property that had been unlawfully diverted from a public programme intended to benefit vulnerable communities in Karamoja.
The ruling marks a significant development in Uganda’s ongoing anti-corruption crackdown, reinforcing calls for accountability in the management of public resources.
For many students and young leaders, the case serves as a powerful reminder of the legal and ethical responsibilities that come with public office.