In 2012 (late) I was approached by two men who declined to reveal their details.
They had a scoop for me which in their thinking was a huge story that would help raise my career as a journalist.
This happened at a time I had just been recruited as reporter for Red Pepper, I was very ambitious, I wanted to make a name by breaking big stories.
On table, the two gentlemen asked if I was conversant with a scandal in the OPM and whether I knew top officials in the ministry.
To be specific they questioned my closeness with Pius Bigirimana, the PS (then), I responded that I knew him like any other civil servant.
Truth is I had interfaced with Bigirimana once during a presser at the Ministry, then at Clement Hill.
“Why have you called me here?” I asked. One gentleman told me, the had an earth-shattering story which would raise my brand as a journalist. I was all ears.
These gentlemen told me, they had evidence Bigirimana had stolen money from OPM and they had evidence he is very rich.
At the time, the scandal in OPM had erupted and police was investigating the officials in the Ministry.
I was excited, I knew I this would be a breakthrough for my career.
I requested these gentlemen who I would treat as my sources to relay evidence and wait to read “tomorrow’s Pepper.”
Shockingly, my sources told me “go and write,” if anything happens for us we are witnesses.
They had no document, or evidence as claimed earlier to implicate Mr. Bigirimana as thief.
Very disappointed, I was walked out of the park grabbed a taxi, returned to Namanve in disbelief. But as a rookie I was determined to prove to my boss (Editor) my capabilities.
I told him what had transpired at Centenary Park.
After listening to me, he warned “dont be used.” He explained that in such times different cliques gang up against each other in government.
Meeting Bigirimana
After a while Bigirimana was turned into a daily fodder for the media as many outlets published reports authored by the so called whistleblowers. Even the newspapers known to be professional in the country I believe never verified these dossiers before publishing.
The whistleblowers were shrewd. They would channel their missives against Bigirimana to Parliament first. And the MPs would then convene press conferences casting the person of Pius Bigirimana.
By the way the two gentlemen rang me back after sometime asking if I would consider publishing their story. My demands were plain, “bring authentic evidence.”
Days after, I received a parcel while I was at office, it contained a huge dossier whose author was anonymous.
I carried it home, read overnight. In the morning I contacted Bigirimana’s office. I wanted his side of the story.
Shortly I received a call from a person who spoke very humbly, “you people in the media why are you convicting me and killing me. Why haven’t you bothered to know the truth ,” speaking was OPM PS Pius Bigirimana.
Known as an early riser, he gave me an appointment at 7:30am next day. By the way not many civil servants are in office at that time.
At 7am I was already in his office. A few minutes he arrived, “young man how are you. You must be Nicholas. Come in.”
Our meeting lasted for 10 minutes. Bigirimana explained that he was the whistleblower of the scandal and maintained his stance “I will die fighting corruption.”
He explained how the thieves in the ministry had forged his signature after colluding with officials in Bank of Uganda and Ministry of Finance.
Asked if he was ready to witness in court, Bigiriamana said if it was needed to wipe out corrupt officials in the Ministry then he was willing.
He showed me authentic documents which he had obtained as evidence used by corrupt officials to misappropriate money.
Before I left his office at Clement Hill, Bigirimana once more swore that he will die but won’t tolerate corrupt officials in the Ministry.
I came out fully equipped with information related to the scandal.
In the next days and months, he braved a hailstorm of media headlines but for I knew what he stood for. The thieves were not going to allow him expose him.
Indeed, the thieves in the ministry won a battle when Bigirimana was transferred to a ‘dry ministry” Gender, Labour and Social Development.
I remember many said he had been moved from a high table to a stool.
But Bigrimana dismissed his critics saying there is no dry ministry he would keep doing his work with his head high.
Still while at Ministry of Gender he attended many court sessions and Parliamentary Committees that investigated OPM scandals.
But that didn’t interfere with his work.
In a short time, Bigirimana had developed a concept YouthLivehood Program whose aim was to fight youth unemployment.
“Pumpkin Seed”
While launching the programme at Kololo grounds, President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni was startled by Bigirimana’s relentlessness and how he was able to develop such project in a short period while many officials have worked at the Ministry for ages.
“Many people wanted to kill Bigirimana. Many people accused me of protecting him in OPM. I said let me take him to Gender. But he has proved to me that everything said against him were lies,” the President said.
He then likened him to a pumpkin seed which germinates in any soils whether planted or thrown away.
After 6 years Bigirimana left Gender Ministry with his head high. He was last week transferred to Judiciary which has been riddled with corruption. Again in his words he told me, “remember what I told you when we first met. I am not ready to tolerate corruption.”
For Gender Ministry, the little known dry ministry is to date one of the vibrant government bodies courtesy of Bigirimana having introduced many projects which include YLP, UWEP, Songai Model Farming, Green Lights, etc.
