By Our Reporter
The legal woes of embattled Kampala City Land Board Chairperson and city lawyer, David Balondemu, have deepened after his co-accused, Ssegujja Hassan, entered a plea bargain with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), pleaded guilty, and turned state witness in a high-stakes fraud case.
Appearing before the Buganda Road Chief Magistrates Court this morning, Ssegujja pleaded guilty to three counts of forgery and conspiracy to commit a felony. In exchange for his cooperation, he was convicted and handed a sentence that carries either a fine of UGX 1.5 million per count or a two-year custodial sentence per offense.
But the courtroom bombshell came when Ssegujja lifted the lid on the internal dealings behind the scandal, pinning Balondemu as the mastermind of a calculated scheme to forge medical documents intended to sway a bail application in a larger case involving UGX 2.2 billion allegedly obtained through fraudulent means from an American company.
In a detailed statement before the court, Ssegujja revealed that Balondemu not only orchestrated the forgery but also defrauded him of over UGX 10 million, claiming he could shield him from investigations and prosecution by the State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SH-ACU) and the ODPP.
“I trusted him,” Ssegujja testified. “He told me he had connections with SH-ACU and the prosecutors, and that I wouldn’t be touched if I followed his instructions. I now realise he used me and lied to me.”
The shocking confession casts a shadow over Balondemu, who has frequently lashed out at prosecutors and investigators, accusing them of corruption. However, emerging testimony now suggests it is Balondemu who has been leveraging their names to manipulate and defraud unsuspecting victims—even those he allegedly considered allies.
Legal analysts say this development could drastically shift the momentum of the ongoing fraud trial, with Ssegujja’s testimony potentially becoming a pivotal turning point in the State’s case against Balondemu.
The prosecution has since confirmed that Ssegujja is now a state witness and will take the stand in the upcoming hearings against Balondemu.
As the courtroom drama unfolds, the revelations raise deeper questions about integrity within public land dealings and the exploitation of anti-corruption institutions by individuals using legal influence for personal gain.