KIHIHI – The Bishop of the Kinkiizi Dan Zoreka has suspended the Archdeacon and parish priest of St Andrew’s Kihihi C.O.U Rev Ven Justus Tibesigwa until he clears the complaints raised against him.
The Archdeacon was suspended for one month in a meeting held at the archdeaconry headquarters in Kihihi on Thursday, January 1, 2020, presided over by Bishop Zoreka.
In a letter dated December 26, 2019, signed by the diocesan secretary Rev Kenneth Kanyankore, Tibesigwa was suspended on two complaints;
First because of allegations that he conducted a wedding in ungazetted place without permission from the Bishop.
“The office has credible information that you presided over a wedding of a foreign couple from Queen Elizabeth National Park which is not licensed and gazetted place tor sensitizing weddings under the Church of Uganda in particular for the diocese. The said wedding is alleged to have taken place on 17rh July 2019,” Kanyankole said the statement in part.
Kanyankole noted that Tibesigwa’s conduct was inappropriate, disgracing the Church of Uganda and therefore amounted to a violation of the regulations of the province and the diocese of Kihihi
The second is that Tibesigwa solicited for funds from donors on behalf of diocese and this money was never used for the intended purpose.
“There is information that you have formed a Non-Governmental Organisation code-named Australia-Africa-Natural Resources Initiative which you have used to falsely solicit funds to allegedly support Education department, Batwa Development program and Church of Uganda Bwinfi community hospital,” reads an excerpt
According to Kanyankole, the two cases are gross and serious ecclesiastical offenses which amount to fraud and, therefore, friable by the diocesan tribunal.
“The province human resource manual, provincial canons, Diocesan Constitution, do provide that investigations be carried out and as such the concerned person against whom such investigations need to be carried upon has to be suspended from work for a period not exceeding one month on half-pay,” reads the statement in part.
