Interpretation
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires
"agent" means a person employed by or acting for another, and includes a trustee, an administrator or an executor, and a person employed in the public service or under a corporation or a public body, and for the purposes of section 5 includes a subcontractor and a person who is employed by or acting for a subcontractor;
"authorised officer" means a police officer not below the rank of Assistant Inspector of Police authorised in writing by the Inspector General of Police or an inspectorate officer authorised in writing by the Inspector General of Government or a State Attorney authorised in writing by the Director of Public Prosecutions;
"confiscation" includes forfeiture and where applicable, means the permanent deprivation of property by order of court;
"confiscation order" means a confiscation order referred to in section 66 ;
"corruptly" means purposely doing an act, which tends to corrupt, or influence a person to do an act or omission contrary to established procedures;
"currency point" has the value assigned to it in the Schedule to this Act;
"gratification" includes-
money or any gift, loan, fee, reward, commission, valuable security or other property or interest in property of any description, whether movable or immovable;
any office, employment or contract;
any payment, release, discharge or liquidation of any loan, obligation or other liability, whether in whole or in part;
any other service, favour or advantage of any description, including protection from any penalty or disability incurred or apprehended or from any action or proceedings of a disciplinary or penal nature, whether or not already instituted, and includes the exercise or the forbearance from the exercise of any right or any official power or duty; and
any offer, undertaking or promise of any gratification within the meaning of subparagraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d);
"inspectorate officer" means an officer of the Inspectorate of Government designated as an inspectorate officer;
"property" includes money, assets of every kind whether corporeal or incorporeal, movable or immovable, tangible or intangible and legal documents or instruments evidencing title to or interest in such assets;
"principal" includes an employer, a beneficiary under a trust, and a trust estate as though it were a person and any person beneficially interested in the estate of a deceased person as though the estate were a person and in the case of a person employed in the public service or a public body, includes the Government or the public body, as the case may be;
"public body" includes-
the Government, any department, services or undertaking of the Government;
the East African Community, its institutions and corporations;
the Cabinet, Parliament, any court;
a district administration, a district council and any committee of a district council, local council and any committee of any such council;
any corporation, committee, board, commission or similar body whether corporate or incorporate, established by an Act of Parliament for the purposes of any written law relating to the public health or public undertakings of public utility, education or for promotion of sports, literature, science, arts or any other purpose for the benefit of the public or any section of the public to administer funds or property belonging to or granted by the Government or the East African Community, its institutions or its corporations or money raised by public subscription, rates, taxes, cess or charges in pursuance of any written law;
a political party, labour union, society registered under the Cooperative Societies Act and any council, board, committee or society established by an Act of Parliament for the benefit, regulation and control of any profession or non-governmental organisations;
"special investigator" means a person appointed under section 50 ;
"tainted property" means property used in connection with the commission of an offence under this Act or property constituting the proceeds of an offence.
Section analysis Source linked
This section supplies the definitions or statutory meaning governing “Interpretation”.
“In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires "agent" means a person employed by or acting for another, and includes a trustee, an administrator or an executor, and a person employed in the public service or under a corporation or a public body, and for the purposes of section 5 includes a subcontractor and a person who is employed by or acting for a subcontractor;”
Use this definition when interpreting other provisions that employ the language addressed by “Interpretation”.
Operative requirements extracted from the consolidated text.
- "authorised officer" means a police officer not below the rank of Assistant Inspector of Police authorised in writing by the Inspector General of Police or an inspectorate officer authorised in writing by the Inspector General of Government or a State Attorney authorised in writing by the Director of Public Prosecutions;
- "confiscation" includes forfeiture and where applicable, means the permanent deprivation of property by order of court;
- "confiscation order" means a confiscation order referred to in section 66;
- "corruptly" means purposely doing an act, which tends to corrupt, or influence a person to do an act or omission contrary to established procedures;
- "currency point" has the value assigned to it in the Schedule to this Act;
- "gratification" includes-
- "inspectorate officer" means an officer of the Inspectorate of Government designated as an inspectorate officer;
- "property" includes money, assets of every kind whether corporeal or incorporeal, movable or immovable, tangible or intangible and legal documents or instruments evidencing title to or interest in such assets;
4 further items remain in the statutory text above.
Express propositions in source-matched passages from judgments citing this section.
Section 1 of the Anti-Corruption Act defines a public body to include:Uganda v Matsiko & Another (Criminal Session 17 of 2023) [2025] UGHCACD 13 (27 May 2025)
Court level is shown; confirm that the quoted proposition forms part of the ratio before treating it as binding.
No section-specific note is recorded. Act-level consolidation history:
- [Amended by Anti-Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 21 of 2015) on 11 November 2015]
Act-level history only · Do not infer that every amendment changed this section