A 27-year-old businessman has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for forging a letter purportedly signed by President Yoweri Museveni and other government documents in an attempt to secure the renewal of a contract to manage MV Kalangala for another 15 years.
Nicholus Male was sentenced by Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court Senior Principal Magistrate Winnie Nankya Jatiko after pleading guilty to seven counts of forgery and uttering false documents under a plea bargain agreement.
According to the prosecution, Male forged a letter dated August 15, 2025, addressed to the Minister of Works and Transport and purportedly authored by President Museveni, directing the renewal of Nation Oil Distributors Limited’s contract to manage MV Kalangala for a further 15 years.
The prosecution said the accused presented the forged letter on September 18, 2025, to the Ministry of Works and Transport, the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, and the offices of Nation Oil Distributors Limited in Ndeba.
Court documents further indicate that he forged three other letters dated July 17, 18 and 28, 2025, purportedly issued by the Office of the Prime Minister.
He was also accused of forging appointment letters bearing the names of three individuals namely; Ssuka Uthman Idris, Nalubega Rehema Jamil and Ninsiimah Ronah, falsely claiming that the documents had been issued by the Office of the Prime Minister.
In presenting the plea bargain agreement, the prosecution led by Viola Tusingwire described the offences as serious, arguing that forging the President’s signature and documents attributed to government institutions undermined the authority of the Head of State and damaged the credibility of public offices.
The prosecution further argued that such offences could encourage similar crimes and expose unsuspecting members of the public to fraud. It asked the court to treat the offences seriously, noting that the case was already part heard.
However, the defence asked the court for leniency, citing Male’s guilty plea, remorse, youth and status as a first-time offender with no previous criminal record.The defence also argued that his admission of guilt had spared tcourt the need to conduct a full trial.
Under the plea bargain agreement, Male agreed to plead guilty to all seven counts. The parties proposed a sentence of one year and six months’ imprisonment on each count, with the terms to run concurrently.
The court adopted the concurrent sentencing arrangement, meaning Male will serve the prison terms simultaneously rather than consecutively, resulting in an effective sentence of 18 months.
The court also directed that the time Male had spent on remand be taken into account. If it wasn’t a pre bargain agreement, forgery attracts a seven year imprisonment sentence-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
