The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Jane Frances Abodo, has formally withdrawn all criminal proceedings against former Makerere University Business School (MUBS) Principal, Professor Waswa Balunywa, and his co-accused, Jacqueline Namaganda, who had been facing multiple counts of abuse of office and neglect of duty.
In a withdrawal form dated November 7, 2025, addressed to the Chief Magistrate of Nakawa Court, DPP Abodo stated, “The Director of Public Prosecutions has decided to discontinue proceedings against A1, Professor Waswa Balunywa, A2, Namaganda Jacqueline, charged with 3 counts of abuse of office c/s 10(1) of the Anti-Corruption Act Cap 166, 3 counts of neglect of duty c/s 101 of the Penal Code Act Cap 128.”
The case had been registered under DPP Case No. HQS-CO-004-2025 and Police Case No. CIDHQTRS E/070/2025.
The withdrawal relieves Professor Balunywa who was remanded to Luzira Prison by the Anti-Corruption Court over allegations of irregular recruitment and misuse of office.
He was accused of arbitrarily recruiting three administrative assistants, James Arike, Nimrod Kakayi, and Nathan Niwagira, between March 18 and 28, 2023, despite knowing that they did not meet the minimum academic qualifications. The prosecution alleged that his actions caused ineligible costs to the government.
In that case, he was jointly charged with Namaganda, the acting Human Resource Director at MUBS, who was accused of failing to verify the eligibility of the recruits. The second case file alleged that between 2020 and 2023, Balunywa abused his office by irregularly recruiting about 200 staff members, a role that is reserved for the institution’s appointments committee.
When the charges were first read, Balunywa pleaded not guilty. His lawyers argued that the offences were bailable and that he had voluntarily appeared before the court after learning about the case through media reports. The defence presented prominent individuals, including his brother and senior professionals, as sureties during the bail hearing.
The prosecution objected to the bail application, citing doubts about the sureties’ capacity to ensure his attendance in court. The magistrate later remanded Balunywa to Luzira Prison, pending a ruling on his bail application.
The two were among a group of 30 people accused of causing a total financial loss of about Shs53 billion to the government through various irregularities in public institutions.
The DPP’s decision effectively halts further prosecution unless new evidence emerges. No public explanation was provided for the withdrawal.
