Bujukano v. R. Crim. App. 114-M-71; 15/10/71; 15/10/71; Makame J.

Bujukano v. R. Crim. App. 114-M-71; 15/10/71; 15/10/71; Makame J.

            The appellant was revenue collector. In the course of his duty he collected Shs. 2,842/= but remitted only Shs. 2,496/=. When asked to plead he said “It is true I lost this money”, during the recital of the facts thee was no allegation by the prosecution that the appellant had stolen the missing money. He was convicted of stealing by public agent. The main issues on appeal were whether or not the appellant had pleaded guilty to the charge and whet her he could be convicted of occasioning loss to the Government c/s 284A of the Penal Code.

                        Held: (1) “In my view ………. The appellant did not admit every constituent of the charge and the record does not show that he pleaded guilty to every element of it unequivocally. (R. vs. Yonsani Egaul & 3 Others 1942, 9 E. A. C. A. 65).” (2) “It is not possible to substitute for the purported conviction one of occasioning loss to the Government contrary to section 284A of the Penal Code. This is for two reasons. One is that occasioning loss to the Government is not, per se, a criminal offence. To be a criminal offence it is necessary that the loss should be a result of “any willful act or omission, or by his negligence or misconduct, or by reason of his failure to take reasonable care or to discharge his duty in a reasonable manner”, proof of which is wanting in the present case. The second reason is that the Director of Public Prosecutions’ consent was not obtained as required under subsection 4 of section 284A.” (3) Appeal allowed.