KAMPALA – President Museveni has promised to deal with the mafia that forced the Executive Director of National Animal Genetic Resource Center and Data Bank (NAGRC & DB), Dr. Charles Lagul, out of office.
Dr Charles Lagu was last month interdicted as per the Public Service standing orders after being charged with mismanagement of government funds. Dr Lagu will now earn half salary as investigations into the charges against him continue.
PML Daily has learnt that President Museveni, while meeting officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries recently, said he is fully aware that some government officials, including those in the supervising ministry, are behind the woes of Dr Lagu, whom he described as a good cadre.
Dr Lagu was arrested from his home in Mbarara by operatives from the State House Anti-Corruption Unit. He together with Philip Ezekiel Mukani, the procurement officer, Olivious Komujuni, Animal Husbandry officer, and the director of Nuruma Holdings Limited, Mr Emmanuel Kafute Rumanzi, were charged before Makindye Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, April, 29.
The President told the Agriculture officials, who included Maj (Rtd) Bright Rwamirama, the Minister for Animal Husbandry, that he was aware that some government mafia were using the Nakalema unit to harass Dr Lagu whom he said was doing well to revitalise government livestock farms that have been had for long been mismanaged.
According to Mr Museveni, his own investigation found that Dr Lagu, who is in his late 40s, is innocent but some selfish people are trying to derail his work after he frustrated them from grabbing government land.
While meeting the government officials, sources said the President narrated how these same government mafia tried to use a beautiful woman to woo Dr Lagu so that she could get vital documents and secrets from him in vain.
Mr Museveni made the remarks after Maj Rwamirama told the President that that some senior ministry officials, including Minister Vincent Ssempijja and the Permanent Secretary, Mr Pius Wakabi, were working to derail plans to improve managing of livestock farms.
Sources further revealed that Maj Rwamirama narrated that Mr Wakabi and Mr Ssempijja were maliciously interfering with his docket and working to sideline him in the management of the NAGRIC affairs.
The latest story come on the backdrop of the expose by this website on May 3, 2020, how Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga and the head of the Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), Gen Salim Saleh, vowed to intervene and ensure that justice is served for Dr Lagu.
PML Daily obtained exclusive reports of separate meetings held between NAGRIC board members and Kadaga on one hand, and Gen Saleh on the other, accusing some mafia in government of witch-hunting Dr Lagu on account of frustrating their plans to grab part of land belonging to the government stock farms.
In a meeting held between Kadaga and NAGRIC board members, the Speaker of Parliament reacted with anger to reports that Dr Lagu had defrauded government. Instead she said that the NAGRIC boss had done well in revamping several stock farms around the country. She gave an example of Kasolwe stockfarm in Kamuli District, which she said she visited in January 2020 and found that Dr Lagu and his team were doing a good job.
The Speaker is said to have pledged to ensure that Dr Lagu returns to his office as soon as possible.
On the other hand, Gen Saleh was also perturbed by Dr Lagu’s arrest given that the two have been working together to restock the ranches with improved breeds under OWC.
The developments came after Members of Parliament from the West Nile Sub region asked President Museveni to interest himself in the arrest of Dr Lagu, saying he is a victim of witch-hunt by the mafia seeking to grab government land.
