In a moment that underscores the enduring bonds forged in Uganda’s military and the transition of a generation of commanders, Gen. (Rtd) Salim Saleh (Caleb Akandwanaho) has paid tribute to Lt. Gen. (Rtd) Charles Awany Otema as one of the country’s greatest soldiers. Saleh thanked Otema for decades of service protecting the nation and contributing to its progress.
The remarks come as Otema formally retired from the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) on 20 August 2026 after 47 years in uniform, part of a larger send-off of 19 general officers.
Otema, often addressed as Afande, rose from a young recruit to senior command through consistent performance across varied roles. Born in what is now Nwoya District in northern Uganda, he joined the military shortly after completing his Primary Leaving Examinations around 1979, when family circumstances limited further formal schooling. He served during the Uganda National Liberation Front period before integrating into the National Resistance Army, which later became the UPDF.
His career included critical staff and operational assignments: Chief of Logistics and Engineering, and later General Officer Commanding the Reserve Force. He contributed to counter-insurgency efforts against the Lord’s Resistance Army in northern Uganda, including operations such as Iron Fist and Lightning Thunder, as well as related efforts in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Garamba region. Colleagues, including Lt. Gen. James Mugira, have highlighted his role in strengthening institutions and leaving the Reserve Force better positioned than he found it.
Saleh’s recognition carries particular weight. As President Yoweri Museveni’s younger brother and a veteran of the liberation struggle, Saleh joined the Front for National Salvation in 1976 at age 16. He trained in Mozambique, fought in key battles, and commanded the NRA’s final assault on Kampala in January 1986.
He later served as Army Commander (1987–1989) and has long acted as Senior Presidential Adviser on Defence and Security while coordinating Operation Wealth Creation, a major civil-military programme focused on household incomes, agriculture, and socio-economic transformation. Saleh has repeatedly emphasised practical approaches to security that link defence with development, peace-building in the north, and adaptation to modern challenges such as information warfare.
The two officers’ paths have intersected in the shared work of stabilising and developing northern Uganda. After retirement, Otema returned to his ancestral home in Tangi village, Purongo Sub-county, Nwoya District, where elders performed traditional cleansing rituals to reintegrate him into community life.
He has spoken of shifting focus to economic transformation—farming, hospitality, animal husbandry, and wealth creation in Acholi. Notably, Otema has publicly noted discussions with Saleh about a possible role as a provincial governor overseeing government programmes in northern Uganda, and he received documentation from Saleh outlining investment opportunities under an Acholi Investment Plan.
These exchanges illustrate a continuity of purpose: military experience channeled into civilian development goals that Saleh has long championed through Operation Wealth Creation.
Otema’s retirement forms part of a broader generational shift. President Museveni, as Commander-in-Chief, presided over the formal send-off and praised the outgoing generals for advancing peace, security, patriotism, and the integration of military capability with national economic goals. Otema handed over command of the Reserve Force to Maj. Gen. Joseph Ssemwanga, with senior officers stressing the importance of mentoring successors to ensure institutional continuity.
Both men exemplify different yet complementary strands of Uganda’s post-1986 security and development story. Saleh, the strategist and long-time adviser who moved from battlefield command to wealth-creation coordination, represents institutional memory and quiet influence. Otema, the logistics specialist, reserve force leader, and northern son who spent nearly half a century in uniform, embodies operational reliability and regional roots.
Their mutual regard—Saleh’s public description of Otema as among Uganda’s greatest soldiers, and Otema’s engagement with Saleh’s development vision—highlights respect across ranks and regions.
As Otema steps into civilian life and Saleh continues his advisory and coordination work, the farewell underscores a simple truth of Uganda’s military tradition: service measured not only in years or ranks, but in the protection of the country and the quiet promotion of its greater heights. The nation marks the end of one chapter while recognising the foundations both officers helped build.
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King Saha recently took time away from the music scene to visit elderly residents at Mapeera Bakateyamba Home in Nalukolongo.
The Ugandan singer arrived with several essential items, including bread, firewood, sugar, rice, flour and eggs. He also gave cash to support the home.
For King Saha, the visit was a way of showing appreciation for the support he has received from Ugandans throughout his music career.
The people of Uganda have shown me a lot of love and support, and I wanted to give back by sharing the little I have with those in need.
The visit allowed the singer to spend time with the elderly residents while delivering the supplies and support he had brought.
King Saha has spent years receiving love from fans through his music. This time, he took some of that appreciation to Mapeera Bakateyamba Home in Nalukolongo, where the residents received him with his hands full.
The government tabled a Bill seeking to establish a single authority to regulate food products, agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicines and other agricultural inputs.
The Food and Agriculture Regulatory Authority Bill, 2026, was presented to Parliament for first reading on Tuesday by Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries Minister Frank Tumwebaze.
The Bill proposes the establishment of the Food and Agriculture Regulatory Authority (FARA), which would oversee the manufacture, distribution, importation, exportation and supply of a wide range of products across Uganda’s food and agricultural value chains.
These would include agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicines and vaccines, veterinary devices, cosmetics, laboratory supplies, food products and animal feeds.Tumwebaze said the proposed authority would address fragmentation in the regulation of food and agricultural products by bringing key responsibilities under one specialised institution.
“The new authority will bring fragmented regulatory responsibilities under one institution to improve coordination, efficiency and accountability across Uganda’s food and agricultural value chains,” Tumwebaze said.
Speaker Jacob Markson Oboth-Oboth, who chaired Tuesday’s plenary sitting, referred the Bill to the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture for detailed scrutiny.
The committee is chaired by Mawokota North MP Amelia Kyambadde.The legislation follows Cabinet approval of the proposal earlier in July.Government says the proposed reform is intended to address overlapping mandates among existing regulatory institutions and improve enforcement across the food and agricultural sectors.
Currently, regulatory responsibilities are shared among several institutions, including the National Drug Authority and the Uganda National Bureau of Standards.
Kassanda North MP Patrick Oshabe said the existing arrangement has resulted in duplication, inefficiencies and uncertainty over regulatory responsibilities.The proposed authority would be responsible for ensuring that food and animal feeds produced locally or imported into Uganda meet safety requirements and that agricultural and veterinary inputs comply with prescribed quality standards.
It would also regulate agricultural chemicals to ensure their use does not pose unacceptable risks to human health, animal health, plant life or the environment.
The Bill further seeks to strengthen the fight against counterfeit and substandard agricultural and veterinary products, including poor-quality seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and veterinary medicines.
Such products can affect agricultural productivity, increase production costs for farmers and pose risks to consumers, livestock and the environment.
The proposed reforms come as Uganda seeks to increase the quality and competitiveness of its agricultural products in domestic, regional and international markets.
Agricultural commodities, including coffee, tea, fish and horticultural products, form an important part of Uganda’s export earnings.
Access to some international markets also requires compliance with food safety, quality and sanitary and phytosanitary standards.
The government argues that a more coordinated regulatory system could improve compliance with those requirements, strengthen traceability and increase confidence among consumers and trading partners.
The proposed authority would operate within an existing regulatory framework that includes the Agricultural Chemicals (Control) Act, the National Drug Policy and Authority Act and standards enforcement mechanisms administered by UNBS.
However, the Bill is likely to face scrutiny over how the proposed authority would relate to existing agencies and how regulatory functions would be transferred or shared.
Lawmakers are also expected to examine the authority’s proposed financing, staffing, laboratory and technical capacity and the cost of establishing a new regulatory institution.
The committee will also have to consider whether consolidating functions would improve enforcement without creating additional bureaucracy or weakening specialised regulatory capacity already available within existing institutions.
The Bill will undergo detailed scrutiny by the Agriculture Committee before it returns to the House for further consideration.
If Parliament approves the legislation, the government will have to establish the institutional and technical systems required for FARA to carry out its proposed mandate.
The proposed reform therefore represents an attempt to create a more coordinated regulatory framework covering food safety, agricultural inputs and veterinary products, but its final structure and powers will depend on Parliament’s consideration of the Bill.
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KAMPALA — Trouble is deepening at the Microfinance Support Centre (MSC) after Parliament ordered the arrest of the institution’s top management for allegedly dodging a second summons to appear before lawmakers and answer questions over billions of shillings in losses, loan write-offs and other financial management failures.
The Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) on Tuesday ordered the arrest of MSC Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer John Peter Mujuni and the institution’s directors after they failed to honour a second invitation to appear before the committee.
The dramatic order was issued by COSASE chairperson Muwada Nkunyingi, who accused the MSC bosses of deliberately refusing to face Parliament despite being summoned to explain queries raised in the Auditor General’s report.
The officials were expected to account for the institution’s financial management and performance, but their failure to appear has now turned a financial accountability investigation into a confrontation over parliamentary oversight.
Nkunyingi said the committee had invited the MSC management twice, but the top executives had failed to appear.
He warned that COSASE would use its powers to compel the officials to appear, including ordering their arrest.
The arrest order comes at a particularly difficult time for MSC, with the Auditor General’s report for the financial year 2024/2025 exposing a staggering Sh22.67 billion loss at the institution.
The audit also revealed that loans worth more than Sh63 billion had been written off, raising serious questions about the institution’s ability to protect public funds and recover money advanced to beneficiaries.
The Auditor General flagged a string of weaknesses in the management of the loan portfolio, including outdated collateral, weak loan recovery mechanisms, poor performance of restructured loans, inadequate monitoring and under-collection of outstanding loans.
Some of the loan securities, Parliament was told, had remained outdated for as long as nine years, exposing public funds to increased risk.
The figures have left lawmakers demanding answers over how an institution entrusted with supporting Ugandans through affordable financing could accumulate such huge losses and write off billions in loans.
The committee was also told about problems surrounding funds under the Emyooga programme.
According to the audit findings, Sh13.21 billion remained unutilised and was returned at the end of the financial year, prompting further questions about planning, absorption of funds and the institution’s management of government programmes.
The Auditor General also pointed to weaknesses in procurement, including failure to fully implement planned procurements, inadequate mechanisms for tracking performance and weaknesses in the management of the institution’s non-current assets.
The revelations have triggered growing concern among legislators, with some warning that MSC could be heading towards a crisis unless its management and financial controls are urgently overhauled.
Nakifuma County MP Robert Ssekitoleko said MSC management must be compelled to account for public funds.
Budadiri East MP Julius Nakiyi went further, warning that MSC could be heading towards collapse if urgent corrective measures were not taken.
Jinja South MP Timothy Batuwa also questioned the disbursement of loans to beneficiaries whose identities and eligibility he questioned, particularly in light of the more than Sh63 billion in loans written off.
Batuwa called for the Ministry of Finance to freeze further disbursements to MSC until the institution accounts for funds already committed. He also recommended the removal of the chief executive.
But the biggest immediate battle is now over the refusal of MSC’s top brass to appear before COSASE.
Nkunyingi said Parliament would not allow government agencies and state enterprises to selectively decide when to appear before parliamentary committees.
He accused MSC of previously seeking protection from the Speaker of Parliament following an earlier invitation, but said the current Parliament had made its position clear: accounting officers must personally appear and account for public resources.
“We shall not inherit any syndicate,” Nkunyingi said, insisting that every Auditor General’s report submitted to COSASE would be subjected to scrutiny.
Nkunyingi further rejected any suggestion that MSC’s corporate status could shield its officials from parliamentary accountability.
He said the Government of Uganda has an interest and shareholding in the institution, meaning its managers cannot use the company structure to escape scrutiny over public resources.
The committee, he said, would not only investigate the failure to attend the hearing but would also examine why MSC had repeatedly sought to avoid parliamentary scrutiny and whether individuals or institutions had attempted to shield the entity from accountability.
The confrontation comes as the new COSASE leadership appears determined to flex Parliament’s oversight muscle against government agencies, public corporations and state enterprises.
The committee’s action against MSC follows a warning by Speaker Jacob Marksons Oboth-Oboth, who last week cautioned accounting officers against dodging interfaces with parliamentary committees.
MSC is now the second government entity in two days to be forced to appear before COSASE.
On Monday, the committee summoned Uganda Airlines Chief Executive Officer Girma Wake and members of the airline’s top management after they failed to appear for a scheduled interface.
Unlike MSC, however, Uganda Airlines subsequently communicated with the committee and explained its absence.
Girma wrote to COSASE on Tuesday morning, indicating that the airline’s management team would be available to interface with the committee on Thursday as scheduled.
LEGS MONEY ALSO UNDER SPOTLIGHT
The MSC accountability storm is unfolding alongside questions over its involvement in the multibillion-shilling Local Economic Growth Support Project (LEGS), a major government programme designed to lift millions of Ugandans out of poverty.
The $150 million project, worth approximately Sh545 billion, is being implemented through the Ministry of Local Government with financing from the Government of Uganda, the Islamic Development Bank and the Lives and Livelihoods Fund.
The programme is intended to improve household incomes and reduce poverty in dry and remote rural areas by supporting agriculture, water access, agro-processing, local enterprises and financial inclusion.
But instead of a smooth rollout, the project has become entangled in land disputes, financial accountability questions and implementation problems.
One of the major concerns involves the ownership of land on which infrastructure financed under the project has been constructed.
The ownership of part of the land on which the Rwakibira Valley Dam in Gomba District was constructed is contested by a private individual.
In Nakaseke District, the problem is even more direct, with the land on which the Katalekamese market shade was constructed being privately owned.
The findings raise questions over how the land was identified, verified and secured before public money was committed to the projects.
And now MSC’s handling of LEGS financing has itself come under the microscope.
SH2.73BN LOANS TO PRIVATE COMPANIES
During the financial years ended June 30, 2024 and June 30, 2025, MSC disbursed loans amounting to Sh2.73 billion to private companies, according to the findings.
The disbursements were contrary to provisions contained in the financing agreement.
The revelation has placed project managers and responsible officials under pressure to explain how the money ended up with private companies despite the conditions governing the financing arrangement.
The concern is particularly significant because LEGS is supposed to support local economic growth, household incomes and rural enterprises.
SH216.53M UNACCOUNTED FOR
Another financial headache involves Kyenjojo District Local Government.
The project advanced Sh216.53 million to the district to facilitate dairy breed and nutritional improvement.
However, the money was not accounted for.
The missing accountability has raised questions about the controls used to track project funds transferred to local governments and whether those responsible for supervising implementation and financial reporting can account for how the money was utilised.
PROJECTS THAT ARE NOT WORKING AS EXPECTED
Physical inspection of projects funded under LEGS also uncovered a number of problems.
At Magoma Market shed in Nakaseke District, the facility was found to be under-utilised, raising questions about whether some of the infrastructure is adequately matched to the needs of the communities it was designed to serve.
At Kiwoko in Nakaseke, the maize processing plant was found to be small and lacking proper ventilation, with the inadequate ventilation identified as a health risk.
The findings have raised questions about the planning and design of the facility before construction and whether it meets the operational requirements of a maize processing plant.
The water component of the project has also run into trouble.
Part of the water supply system for Kinoni in Nakaseke District had not been constructed because there was no access road to the proposed site.
A project intended to improve access to water was therefore unable to complete part of its planned infrastructure because the proposed location could not be adequately accessed.
The finding underscores the importance of proper site assessment and coordination before public infrastructure projects are undertaken.
SH545BN PROJECT TARGETS 16M UGANDANS
The scale of the programme makes the accountability concerns even more significant.
LEGS was initially implemented in 17 districts, but its second phase has expanded to 55 districts and is expected to benefit nearly 16 million Ugandans.
The programme is designed to boost crop yields through better seeds, tractors and irrigation, improve access to safe water, construct storage facilities and processing plants, improve market roads and strengthen financial inclusion.
It also targets youth, women and disabled entrepreneurs through microfinance and other enterprise support.
The second phase is a five-year programme focusing on climate change, youth and women entrepreneurship, small-scale irrigation, agro-processing and improved post-harvest handling.
It is being implemented by the Ministry of Local Government with financing from the Lives and Livelihoods Fund, the Islamic Development Bank and the Government of Uganda.
The expansion to 55 districts means that weaknesses already exposed in project management could have implications far beyond the areas where the inspected projects were located.
For MSC, the parliamentary storm therefore comes at a time when the institution is already facing serious questions over its own financial performance, loan recovery and management of public resources.
With a Sh22.67 billion loss, more than Sh63 billion in written-off loans, Sh13.21 billion in unutilised Emyooga funds, and questions over billions disbursed under programmes such as LEGS, COSASE now wants the men and women at the top to come and explain.
Instead, the committee says, the MSC leadership has repeatedly stayed away.
That refusal has now triggered the arrest order.
The next showdown will determine whether the MSC bosses finally walk into Parliament to answer the questions—or are brought before the committee under the force of the law.
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NAIROBI — Kenya has moved to extradite a Chinese national wanted in Uganda over an alleged Sh4.5 billion fraud at Diamond Steel Uganda Limited.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has filed extradition proceedings against 39-year-old Chen Guang, alias Alex, who is wanted by Ugandan authorities to face criminal charges arising from an alleged fraud involving UGX 4,533,379,400, equivalent to about KSh151 million.
Guang is accused of manipulating weighbridge bills and payment vouchers during his time as a cashier at Diamond Steel Uganda Limited, a trading and importing company located along Jinja Road in Mbalala, Mukono Division, Mukono Municipality.
According to the allegations, Guang exploited his access to the company’s payment documentation and financial processes to facilitate the alleged offences.
The extradition proceedings follow a formal request received by Kenya’s DPP on June 10, 2026, from Uganda. The request, dated April 18, 2025, was transmitted through the Office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice and sought Kenya’s assistance in enforcing the Ugandan warrant of arrest and facilitating Guang’s extradition to Uganda.
Guang was arrested on August 11, 2026, at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport by officers from the Directorate of Immigration Services shortly after arriving from Harare, Zimbabwe.
The arrest followed a warrant issued by Chief Magistrate Aciro Joan of the Mukono Chief Magistrates’ Court in Uganda.
Appearing before the Kenyan court, prosecution counsel Fatma Shaban asked the court to order that Guang be surrendered to Uganda to face 30 counts of forgery and one count of theft.
Shaban also opposed his release on bond pending the hearing and determination of the extradition proceedings, arguing that the Chinese national was a flight risk.
The prosecution is being led by Senior Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Vincent Monda.
The case now places Guang at the centre of a cross-border legal battle, with Uganda seeking to have him returned to face trial over the alleged financial manipulation at the Mukono-based steel company.
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Frank Gashumba has sent a message to any woman who might one day claim to have been his wife: do not.
The outspoken political and social critic says Patience Malaika is the only woman he recognises as his wife, and he wants the record to remain that way even 30 years from now.
Speaking on his regular talk show on Radio4, Gashumba made a declaration that left little room for interpretation.
I have only one wife, and that is Malaika. If I happen to have more than one wife, may Allah punish me. Malaika knows my children, and 30 years from now, no other woman should come out and claim that she was my wife.
Malaika also holds another distinction in Gashumba’s life.
She is the only woman whose family he says he has formally visited.
Malaika is the only woman whose family I have ever visited for Kukyala and Kwanjula. In my entire life, I have never visited any other woman’s parents’ home.
He may have dated other women, but when it comes to the title of wife, Gashumba says Patience Malaika stands alone.
That distinction also extends to the traditional steps he took to formalise their relationship.
Gashumba held his traditional introduction ceremony, or Kwanjula, with Patience Mutoni Malaika on May 15, 2025, in Sembabule District, Central Uganda.
Frank Gashumba‘s decision to stick to one wife did not come without some advice from home.
Speaking on Radio4, the political and social critic revealed that his late father, despite having several wives himself, warned him against following the same path.
Gashumba said his father knew firsthand the challenges that came with having multiple wives and children from different women.
That experience, he believes, shaped the advice his father later gave him.
One time, my father took me for a walk around a hill and advised me never to marry more than one wife. He told me that having multiple wives only brings challenges into your life. My father had many wives and children with different women, and he spoke to me about the challenges he faced.
For Gashumba, the advice came from a man who had lived through the very situation he was warning his son about.
Rather than encourage him to follow in his footsteps, his father urged him to avoid the complications that came with having more than one wife.
Gashumba recently declared that Patience Malaika is his only wife and insisted that no other woman should ever claim to have held that title.
The two formalised their relationship during a traditional introduction ceremony, or Kwanjula, held on May 15, 2025, in Sembabule District.
Mindy Kaling’s latest comedy has hit a major roadblock.
Hulu has cancelled “Not Suitable for Work” after just one season, ending its run on the streaming platform only months after its debut.
However, the show may not be completely finished yet.
The comedy, created by American actress, writer and producer Mindy Kaling, premiered on Hulu in June and lasted just nine episodes before the streamer decided there would be no Season 2.
Hulu has not publicly explained what led to the cancellation.
But the Show Could Still Survive
Before fans write the obituary, there is a twist.
Warner Bros. Television, which produces “Not Suitable for Work,” plans to shop the series to other networks and streaming platforms. That means another company could still pick it up and give Kaling’s comedy a second life.
The series follows five ambitious young adults trying to make their careers work while navigating friendships, relationships, and the chaos of life in Manhattan.
So, while Hulu has said goodbye after one season, the final episode may not have been the final word.
For now, “Not Suitable for Work” is cancelled at Hulu. Whether another streamer decides the comedy is worth saving is the next chapter in the story.
Frank Gashumba has thrown down the gauntlet for Uganda’s self-proclaimed celebrities, and he has some very specific ideas about what the title should look like away from the cameras.
Forget the followers. Forget the famous name.
Gashumba wants the lifestyle to match.
Speaking on his Radio4 talk show, the political and social critic took aim at people who proudly call themselves celebrities but, in his view, live in ways that do not reflect the image they project.
And he went straight for the examples.
Stop branding yourselves as celebrities when you still wear second-hand clothes. When you give yourselves that title, you have to look and live it.
For Gashumba, celebrity status does not end with being recognised in public or attracting attention online. If someone claims the title, he believes they should carry it into their everyday lives.
That is why he also took issue with celebrities who, according to him, still use charcoal stoves at home.
The message from Gashumba was blunt: do not just call yourself a celebrity. Look like one. Live like one.
Whether Uganda’s celebrities agree with his definition of the lifestyle, however, is another matter entirely.
Fans see the finished look when a female musician steps onto the stage, but Jowy Landa says getting there can be a whole production of its own.
The Ugandan singer, born Joan Namugerwa, opened up about what goes into preparing for a performance while speaking on Sanyuka Wardrobe at King Saha’s concert at Kololo Airstrip on August 14.
According to her, picking an outfit is only one part of the process.
There is wig installation. Then comes the makeup. Before an artist even decides what to wear, a designer may arrive with more than 20 different outfits to choose from.
For ladies, it is really complicated because there is wig installation. The designer brings clothes, over 20 outfits, and sometimes you do not understand them. Makeup. It is crazy. Female musicians really do invest in themselves.
So, with all those options on the table, how does she finally settle on one?
For Jowy Landa, the answer is simple.
They bring very many clothes, and you choose what you want.
By the time fans see the singer on stage, the outfit may look like just one part of the performance.
Behind it, however, is the process of preparing the hair, applying makeup and deciding which of the many looks will make the final cut.
