The Anti-Corruption Court in Kampala has, on Tuesday, August 8, 2023, issued an order for the arrest of Livingstone Ebiru, the former Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) Executive Director.
Ebiru was fired by the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Co-operatives, Francis Mwebesa, on the recommendation of the National Standards Council to have him relieved of his duties.
According to the court summons, Ebiru is required to appear in court on August 31st, 2023, to answer corruption charges against him.
His trouble stemmed from the confession he made while appearing before the parliament’s committee on commissions, statutory authorities, and state enterprises (COSASE), where he admitted to having offered a bribe of one hundred million shillings to keep his job.
In his letter, Minister Mwebesa said Ebiru’s admission of bribery under oath and attempt to withdraw such an allegation have caused grave injury to the reputation of the Chairman and members of the Council.
“The purpose of this letter, therefore, is to inform you that I hereby disqualify you from the position of Executive Director of UNBS with immediate effect, in accordance with Section 11(2), (5)(b) and (c) of the UNBS Amendment Act 2013,” Mwebesa’s letter to Ebiru reads in part.
The bribery allegations were related to the renewal of his employment contract by the Council.
On August 1st, a special meeting was held where the National Standards Council reviewed and analyzed evidence concerning the allegations of misconduct, mismanagement, and misappropriation of funds and the accused’s response and found him guilty.
