The roll-out of the plea bargain at the Anti-Corruption court in Kololo on Friday was more dramatic than anticipated. The programme is aimed at reducing the huge case backlog.

A plea bargain is an agreement struck in a criminal case between the prosecutor and the accused person in which the latter agrees to plead guilty to a particular charge in return for either a lenient penalty or some deal from the prosecutor.

On May 13, the programme was officially launched in the presence of Yorokamu Bamwine, the principal judge, IGG Irene Mulyagonga, Justice Lawrence Gidudu, the head of the Anti-Corruption court, and Justice Margaret Tibulya.

The launch got off to a dramatic start when two people accused of graft pleaded guilty as part of a plea bargain deal. Prosecution alleged that between September 13 and 16, 2011, Ausi Balikanda, a community health mobiliser, and Patrick Kasumba, a police officer, conducted operations and arrested people without home pit latrines and kitchens in Kyankwanzi district.

After arresting 25 people, the duo demanded for bribes to release the offenders. The bribes ranged from money, chicken to maize. Police estimated the total value of the bribes at Shs 600,000.

So, when the case came up before the Anti-Corruption court Grade One magistrate Peter Lochomin, senior state attorney Tom Walugembe said the accused had accepted to plead guilty in exchange for a non-custodial sentence of Shs 1.5 million each. The prosecutor said some of money would be given to the victims.

“It’s true we agree to change our plea, now we plead guilty and we shall never do it again,” the accused said.

Walugembe then said: “The offences were premeditated and committed [the crime] over a span of three days but since the accused are ready to pay, they should be freed.”

Four of the victims told court they had forgiven their tormentors. Then Jordan Asibo, the accused’s lawyer, handed over Shs 1.5m to the magistrate who in turn read out his final ruling.

“The accused are found guilty on all six counts and they are barred from holding public office for the next ten years,” Lochomin said, ending the session.

In her speech, Mulyagonja warned that the judiciary should shield plea bargaining from any possible abuse by corrupt people.

“Some corrupt individuals might start accepting crimes so that other people in the racket walk away unscathed in what we call syndicate corruption. That’s why we should be very careful when rolling out this programme,” she said.

She also warned that if people are not well-sensitized, they might construe plea bargain to be a form of soft landing for the corrupt.

“People will start saying that even if you steal, you just come [in court] and accept then you get a soft punishment,” she warned.

The Anti-Corruption court was established in August 2008 to adjudicate all corruption-related cases.