Proscovia Bamutura, the Deputy Prime Minister of Bunyoro Kingdom has been dragged to Kawempe police in Kampala after she rejected to pay a supplier over shs 50 million.
Moses Kisolo a renowned business man in Kampala claims that last year on September 8, he received Local Purchase Order (LPO) as a commitment from Ms Bamutura to supply 4o tonnes of maize seeds at a rate of shs 1.3m (per tonne) arising to a tune of shs 5200000 million in payment if delivered.
“The date of delivery was not specified but I was tasked to make the supplies available in the event that they needed them. The LPOs were on a letter of Butel limited, an entity under Bunyoro Kingdom, to which she’s a director,” Kisolo told TrumpetNews exclusively.
He added that Ms Bamutura assigned her son Mark Alinaitwe to ensure the supplier executes his job because there was a group of people who were travelling from Dubai in a week’s time and needed the supplies on time.
“Through our discussions I was told that there was a team coming from Dubai meant to take these products and I was given labelling stickers.”
To ensure he delivers quality product, Moses disposed off the maize he had in Masindi stores and opted to purchase from Kampala and on September 13, 2017, he delivered at ACL limited for cleaning, drying and Packaging in Kawempe.
“ACL is a few meters away from the Kawempe ware house where I was to deliver the merchandise and I agreed with Mark that I could have some tonnage (10 tonnes) delivered for show casing and then bring the balance in the event of loading so that we would not have to go into the expense of loading and off loading several times,” he said in misery.
Frustration
Unlike what he had been told earlier that a group of people from Dubai would jet into the country after a week to take the maize, Moses received a communication that it wouldn’t be possible.
He therefore decided to sell off the maize to Maganjo millers and the rest to Kidani millers in kisenyi to avoid losses.
Later on 24th/09/2017, he delivered 11tonnes worth shs 14,300,000 million at Kawempe on information that clients from Dubai had confirmed and Mark signed for them.
However, buyers did not come not until the 5th October 2017 and since most people had recalled their goods and there was only little to show, the buyers were shown a different warehouse at ACL.
“On the 9th/10/2017 Mrs Bamutura informed me that the buyers were impressed with our merchandise though they had not travelled with cash.
After that I kept on being promised payment but nothing came through and Mrs Bamutura went silent though I kept on asking for the way forward,” he adds.
According to the documents seen by this website, on November 9, 2017, Moses received another LPO from Butel Company Limited signed by Mrs Bamutura to supply more 100 tonnes as a follow up on the previous pending transaction.
“Mark said that for every 30 tonnes delivered I would receive $3000 and the balance for the full payment would come in 23 days. I realized that the new LPO had 108000 shillings, I asked Mark about it and he said that due to fluctuations that’s what they could work with.”
Theft
Moses narrates that he didn’t have maize but arranged with a different supplier in Natete, “I told Mark that since they already had my 11 tonnes at the ware house in Kampala I would arrange the 20 tonnes.”
Moses was dismayed when he was arrested who claimed 4 tonnes of his maize were missing after he recalled the goods for the clients (Bamutura and her son) failed to honour payment of 20 tonnes.
“This was reported as theft at Natete police station where I was held and I had to pay the supplier for the loss. Mark and his mother distanced themselves from the situation that befell me. They refused to pick my calls or respond to my texts,” retorts Moses.
Through his own investigations he found that Ms Bamutura and her son have for quite a long time defrauded suppliers using this method.
He has since lodged a complaint at Kawempe police.