Six public servants charged over 273.5m/- fraud in Singida

SINGIDA: A total of six public servants in Singida Region have been arraigned before the Singida Resident Magistrate’s Court on various counts, including abuse of office, causing loss to a public authority, money laundering, using false documents and uttering false documents, involving a cumulative loss of 273.5m/-.

The accused appeared in three separate criminal cases filed on June 30, 2026, all linked to alleged irregularities in procurement and construction projects at Singida Regional Referral Hospital.

In the first case (Criminal Case No. 14688/2026), Frank Nkuba Meza, an Accounts Officer and Secretary to the Construction Materials Store Management Committee at the hospital, was charged with abuse of office, causing loss to a public authority and money laundering.

The prosecution alleges that between December 1, 2021 and July 30, 2022, Meza received construction materials worth 30.22/- but failed to record them in the store ledger before diverting them for his personal use.

In the second case (Criminal Case No. 14689/2026), three accused persons—Deogratias Gosbert Banuba, the then Medical Officer in Charge, engineer Simwela Nuru Martin and contractor Benedicto Lubango Mabula of Luba Contractors—were jointly charged with abuse of office, causing loss to a public authority, money laundering and uttering false documents.

According to the prosecution, Banuba unlawfully awarded the tender for the construction of the COVID-19 Containment Centre at Singida Regional Referral Hospital to Mabula between June 2021 and December 2022.

Martin is alleged to have prepared an Interim Payment Certificate that resulted in an overpayment of 170.1/- to Luba Contractors.

Also read: PCCB moves to address project management gaps in Singida 

The third case (Criminal Case No. 14691/2026) involves Banuba, Procurement Officer Emmanuel Oswald Matola and supplier Erick Richard Mtega.

The trio face charges of using false documents to deceive an employer, abuse of office, causing loss to a public authority and money laundering.

Prosecutors allege that between December 1, 2020 and July 30, 2021, Banuba authorised payment of 73.13m/- to Mtega for construction materials.

It is further alleged that Matola and Mtega used invoices and goods received notes to falsely indicate that the materials had been delivered to the project site when, in fact, they had not.

All the accused appeared before Resident Magistrate Allu Nzowa, where they pleaded not guilty to the charges.

They were denied bail, and all three cases have been adjourned to July 8, 2026, for preliminary hearing.