Government to bail out struggling businessman Bitature with sh249 billion

Pulse Uganda has since learnt that the deal will also come with the Government taking over his power plant in Tororo, Electromax.

The International Chamber of Commerce Court of Arbitration in London ordered Bitature, his wife Carol Nzaro, and four of their businesses to pay South African lender Vantage Mezzanine Fund $66 million (about sh249 billion).

According to a source, Bitature approached the Government with a proposal that his Electromax power plant be taken over as part of a bailout package, a request that drew attention from the Auditor General, who we have since learned is set to audit the plant.

The Finance Minister, Matia Kasaija, acknowledged that the Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Bitature, although he didn’t reveal any more details about the deal.

“Yes, we have done a Memorandum of Understanding with Bitature,” Kasaija told this website in a phone interview.

The State Minister for Investment, Evelyn Anite, allegedly brokered the deal between Bitature and Government, and she neither confirms nor denies being part of the deal.

A year earlier, Bitature's business empire came under threat when Vantage Mezzanine Fund moved to take control of his businesses in an effort to recover money owed to the fund.

Pulse Uganda will keep you abreast of any new developments.