Uganda Netball Federation president Sarah Kityo granted bail 

The Uganda Netball Federation (UNF) president Sarah Kityo Babirye has been granted bail after spending a night in Luzira prison.

She has been granted and also ordered by the Anti-Corruption court to deposit her passport and Shs 7 million cash while her sureties were bonded at Shs 60 million non-cash. 

“I thank God that I am out on bail, I am happy for the support I get from Ugandans who love the truth, I thank the media, especially social media, you have put pressure and these people are now acting in panic, I can’t thank you enough,” she is quoted as saying by UNF on X (formerly Twitter).

Indeed, following her arrest, many Ugandans took to social media to express their disgust at the “witchhunt” by the government officials whose alleged corruption Kityo exposed before the public.

Kityo has had a long run-in with the National Council for Sports (NCS) and Education and Sport minister, also First Lady Janet Museveni. She was remanded yesterday on allegations of false accounting for Shs 186 million that the government paid for the national netball team to participate in the Pent Series tournament in Namibia in 2021.

Kityo has always accused NCS secretary general Patrick Bernard Ogwel of availing her only Shs 186 million but demanding accountability of Shs 425 million instead. Babirye also earlier cited the netball team trip to South Africa in 2021 for the Male Netball Championship where Ogwel reportedly demanded Shs 40 million cash in kickback out of the released Shs 100 million.

Similar allegations were levelled against Ogwel by the Uganda Boxing Federation (UBF) president Moses Muhagi, who was also earlier in May this year also remanded to Luzira prison on charges of forgery and uttering a false document.

Muhangi was accused together with Lydia Namutebi who is the former accountant of UBF, between March and April 2022 at the head offices of the federation in Lugogo in Kampala district of forging a company receipt of Tents 4 U Company Ltd.

This came after Muhangi alleged that in 2019 while taking a team to participate in the 2020 Olympic qualifiers, UBF was given only Shs 45 million by NCS but the federation was instead requested to account for Shs 600 million. 

Kityo was earlier this year ordered by Ms Museveni to vacate office to allow for investigations into alleged misappropriation of funds and mismanagement of UNF. Even when she was cleared by the Inspector General of Government (IGG) of any wrongdoing, Ms Museveni still ordered her out of office and replaced her with her deputy former army spokesperson Brig General Molly Byekwaso, a decision Kityo soundly and roundly opposed.

The first lady then ordered NCS to cancel the certificate of recognition of UNF which effectively withdrew the She Cranes from the ongoing Africa Netball Cup at the University of Botswana Indoor Facility in Gaborone. The She Cranes is ranked the number one team in Africa and number five in the world after its recent feats in the Netball World Cup held in South Africa.