Uganda: Trial for Geraldine Ssali and Co-Accused Set for December

What the report says

The Anti-Corruption Court in Kampala has set December 5, 2026, as the start date for the trial of former Ugandan Ministry of Trade Permanent Secretary Geraldine Ssali and five co-accused, according to The Independent in Kampala, distributed by AllAfrica. The group faces charges connected to a disputed 3.8-billion-shilling war-loss compensation payment, with the prosecution alleging misuse and diversion of public funds intended for Buyaka Growers Cooperative Society Limited.

The article says Lady Justice Jane Okuo Kajuga announced the date after rejecting a defense request to pause the case while an appeal is pursued in the Constitutional Court and Supreme Court. One of the accused, former Busiiki County MP Paul Akamba, had sought to stop the criminal proceedings, arguing that his rights had been violated in separate detention-related matters. The judge ruled that those claims were serious but not closely enough linked to the corruption case to justify delaying the trial.

The court had earlier allowed prosecutors to amend the indictment and ordered the accused to enter fresh pleas. The amended charges include counts such as diversion of public resources, receiving stolen property, money laundering, abuse of office, causing financial loss, and conspiracy to defraud. The defendants denied the charges when the amended indictment was read to them.

The case has drawn attention because it has been pending since June 2024 without witness testimony, and it involves current and former lawmakers as well as a senior former government official. More broadly, corruption cases in Uganda often turn on whether the courts allow criminal proceedings to continue alongside separate constitutional or human-rights challenges.