Bagyenda Bank Accounts Transacted Over Shs 20bn in 6 Years

Source: http://chimpreports.com/inside-story-bagyenda-bank-accounts-transacted-over-shs-20bn-in-6-years/

Justine Bagyenda, the outgoing Executive Director in charge of Supervision at Bank of Uganda, made transactions worth Shs 20bn on multiple bank accounts in the last six years.

Bagyenda was recently removed from her job by BoU Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile and replaced with Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) top official, Twinemanzi Tumubweine.

This development followed protracted criticism of how commercial banks were being supervised by the central bank.

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Justine Bagyenda, the outgoing Executive Director in charge of Supervision at Bank of Uganda, made transactions worth Shs 20bn on multiple bank accounts in the last six years.

Bagyenda was recently removed from her job by BoU Governor Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile and replaced with Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) top official, Twinemanzi Tumubweine.

This development followed protracted criticism of how commercial banks were being supervised by the central bank.

While Bagyenda was expected to retire in June 2018, Mutebile said in his statement that the new redeployments took immediate effect – implying she had to leave office.

BoU would later issue another statement, saying the appointments were normal and intended to ‘enhance operational efficiency and effectiveness’ of the institution.

But fresh revelations that Bagyenda stashed billions of shillings in various bank accounts in the country could trigger a fresh investigation into her reign at the central bank.

One of the recent fixed deposits on her account at Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) was $214,149 on December 29, 2017 at an interest rate of 3 percent.

The maturity date is set for Dec. 29, 2018, leading to a net interest of $5,536 after a tax deduction of $977.

Earlier on September 7, 2017, Bagyenda made a fixed deposit of Shs 179m and expects to earn a net interest of Shs 7.5m on maturity in March 2018.

She had on December 29, 2016, made another fixed deposit of $1776, 717 which matured in December 2017.

On December 28, 2014, the transactions which leaked from private auditors indicate, Bagyenda did not make any fixed deposit – but she had a balance of $238, 563 on her Diamond Trust Bank account.

For every deposit, Bagyenda received a certificate of deposit showing the interest the principal amount would attract, taxes incurred and net amount payable to her on maturity.

In March 2014, Bagyenda had made a fixed deposit of Shs900,029,548 which earned her a net interest of Shs 9,187, 424.

In November 2014, Bagyenda had another fixed deposit of Shs568m which saw her realise a net interest of Shs 5.7m.

In January 2015, Bagyenda made another deposit of Shs 480,000,000, setting a maturity date of one month. She earned Shs 4.8m in interest.

Bagyenda’s source of these staggering amounts of money remains unclear.

For about a decade, she has been earning a monthly gross salary of Shs 35m.

With an estimated take home of about Shs 400m per year for 10 years, Bagyenda could have only raised Shs 3.6bn.

Assuming she used 30 percent and saved the rest, Bagyenda would have about Shs 1.8bn as savings.

Through an associate, Bagyenda recently denied reports of accumulating wealth estimated in billions of shillings.

She, however, admitted owning several prime properties in Kampala.

One of the prime properties includes a condominium registered as number 0025 on Plot 410-411 Makerere Hill Road Land at Kampala.

Registered in the name of Bagyenda on July 11, 2008, the property measures approximately 99 square metres, according to Diana Nambi, Commissioner for Land Registration.

Nambi also confirmed that Bagyenda owns a residence on Plot 28, Kimera Close, Ntinda and residential apartments in leafy suburbs of Bugolobi, Naguru, Mbuya and Ntinda.

One of the prime properties includes a condominium registered as number 0025 on Plot 410-411 Makerere Hill Road Land at Kampala.

Registered in the name of Bagyenda on July 11, 2008, the property measures approximately 99 square metres, according to Diana Nambi, Commissioner for Land Registration.

Nambi also confirmed that Bagyenda owns a residence on Plot 28, Kimera Close, Ntinda.

Registry records show Bagyenda was appointed administrator of her late husband, Cliff Bagyenda’s Estate, where the Ntinda residence is situated, on February 1, 1995.

Bagyenda also is the proud owner of one of the posh condominium blocks situated on Plot 5A Sunderland Avenue Kampala measuring 213 square metres.

This property, estimated at over Shs 300m, was registered in her name in 2011.

ChimpReports discovered the ex BoU official owns a property located on Plot 20, Balikuddembe Road.

Bagyenda also acquired a block in one of the posh apartments in Bugolobi, a leafy Kampala suburb.

The associate further told this website that “some of the properties were jointly acquired with her late husband” and that, Bagyenda does not own whole flats but only one unit per flat.

This property, estimated at over Shs 300m, was registered in her name in 2011.

ChimpReports discovered the ex BoU official owns a property located on Plot 20, Balikuddembe Road.

Bagyenda also acquired a block in one of the posh apartments in Bugolobi, a leafy Kampala suburb.

The associate further told this website that “some of the properties were jointly acquired with her late husband” and that, Bagyenda does not own whole flats but only one unit per flat.

How Justine Bagyenda ‘saved’ Sh20 billion in less than 24 months ahead of her retirement

source: http://watchdoguganda.com/part-1-how-justine-bagyenda-saved-sh20-billion-in-less-than-24-months-ahead-of-her-retirement/

Mar 2, 2018

By Lawrence Ssentongo

Every year, public servants, especially those occupying prominent offices are required to file their wealth to the Inspector General of Government. This practice keeps civil servants appetite for money and wealth under check as the IGG monitors what they do and how they profiteer from it.

However, Uganda’s Civil service is not lucrative. In fact, the highest paid civil servant is the governor of the Bank of Uganda who is paid at least Sh50 million a month. It would mean, Governor Tumusiime Mutebile would bank at least Sh600 million a year, if he didn’t touch any penny from his salary. In 10 years, that would be Sh6 billion.

Because civil service is not lucrative, it is even worse upon retirement since the pay to send them home is as well peanuts. That is why Ugandan civil servants loathe retirement. Retirement for them means giving up on a life of privileges.

However, that is not what was on the mind of Ms Justine Nuwagaba Bagyenda, the former Bank of Uganda Director for Supervision as she prepared her retirement.

Bagyenda “saved” away billions of shillings in different banks, amount that would be enough to feed her, her children and children’s children without them working. She did it without any renown business to her name in town.
Although Ms Bagyenda was one of the top earners in Uganda, however investigators studying her wealth are shocked at the rate she multiplied her money.

When news of the recent reshuffle at BoU broke, different people including Cissy Kagaba, a lawyer and the Executive Director of the Anti- Corruption Coalition Uganda (ACCU) castigated the Central Bank for just sending off workers who have been working at the central bank for long, but, without investigating them. It turns out she had smelled the rat.

Now details show the amount of money Ms Bagyenda banked in the last three years could build referral hospitals or highways. Or better, in the 2017/18 budget, Amudat district with a population of 100,000 was given Sh5 billion for the entire year, while Kalangala was given Sh7.5 billion for a population of about 56,000. The same goes to Buliisa district which was given up to Sh8.5 billion for its population of 120,000.

It turns out that Bagyenda’s bank account only would run the districts of Buliisa, Amudat and Kalangala and have some balance. It would mean her bank account would pay teachers, doctors, civil servants, run environment projects, agriculture, etc comfortably without any headache for a full of year.

Investigators into the wealth of the ex Bank Of Uganda Director’s wealth therefore, are wondering as what was the source of her wealth in a country which has been undergoing a slump in its growth.

If her wealth source was her salary, it remains to be seen. However, if Bagyenda was earning up to Sh25 million from the Central Bank a month, it would mean she could bank Sh300 million a year, if she didn’t touch a penny from it. And in 10 years, that money would come to about Sh3 billion. She has almost Sh20 billion, thus the question, where did her money come from?

Investigators say this is just an iceberg.

However, there are more questions than answers as to how Ms Bagyenda made all the money a fraction of which is reflected by her banking records. Investigators are also studying the people who were banking millions weekly into Bagyenda’s accounts. Who are they? What do they do for a living? What business relationship existed between Bagyenda and them? And if they were paying Bagyenda for any service, what kind of service was it?

A total of Sh19.5Bn sits on several accounts operated in her names in banks such as Diamond Trust Bank, GT Bank, among others.

There are some people dropping money unto Ms Bagyenda’s accounts with suspicious character, and on examining their banking tracks, details show they would deposit money to their accounts immediately after banking into the account of Ms Bagyenda. For example, a million shillings would go into Mr Muwonge’s account after for example depositing Sh20 million into Bagyenda’s.

One of the people who appear prominently on the investigator’s list is Kenny Muwonge, a resident of Lweza A Mutungo Parish, who between 2014 and 2017 his account number 21200112273 in Centenary Bank rose from almost empty to transacting more than Sh170 million in one year.

The other is someone signing off as simply CLG.

Kenny Muwonge is so interesting that whenever he would bank money into Bagyenda’s account, he would also put a fraction in his own. It turns out therefore that a person whose balance was Sh486,965 after depositing Sh200,000 on 9/01/2014 went upto Sh176,998,652 by the end of that year, although only Sh2,011,717 was reflected as bank balance that year as he had made several withdraws.

The same Muwonge, however was during this time was posting between Sh10 million and Sh100 million every two to three weeks into Bagyenda’s accounts.

From the amount deposited by Muwonge on his personal account, investigators fail to understand how a person whose bank balance is Sh486,965 at the beginning of the year and ShSh2 million at the end, would be the same person posting over Sh10 million every two to three weeks. Sometimes, even weekly.

Accounts details WD has seen show Bagyenda has invested in fixed deposited, in all major accounts including dollars and Euros as well as Uganda shillings and she is minting billions in return.

As of January 2018, Bagyenda’s standing bank balance was at Shs19, 302441,183.

For instance, in Diamond Trust Bank (DTB), she owns a shilling account number 5106903903 described as ‘low start savings account’ which, as of December 01 2017, had a total of Shs11.4 billion. The same account is expecting another Shs429m on March 07, 2018 when Shs179m she fixed in September 2017 at 10 per cent rate matures.

By 21 October 2017, her shillings account at Barclays had a balance of Shs98m. This one is the smallest account we have looked up.

She also has a dollar account number 5106903904 in Diamond Trust Bank, named Prime Dollar Saving, which as of November 20, 2017 had US $1,074,450 which, at Shs3600 exchange rate translates to Sh3.7 billion.

The statement does not however capture the USD $315,717(Shs1.1 billion) which, a certificate of deposit shows she earned from a fixed account transaction after she had deposited $176,717 on December 29, 2016 at a 4.75 per cent rate. The transaction matured a year later. The same account is expecting US $214,149(Shs750 million) to drop on December 29, 2018 when a US $214,149 fixed deposit she made matures.

The inspector general of government every year looks at the wealth of civil servants to see how they correspond with the income of the public servant, and these documents, according to our sources, are already turning heads at the Inspectorate.

This story will continue as we show you what Justine Bagyenda has been filing at the IGG’s office as required by law. Was she a honest person to make all the disclosure?