The Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) faces a deepening administrative crisis following a directive by Inspector General of Government Lady Justice Naluzze Aisha Batala ordering the immediate interdiction of Registrar General Mercy Kainobwisho and three senior officials over sweeping corruption allegations.
According to a press statement issued by the Inspectorate of Government on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, the formal investigations target Kainobwisho over suspected embezzlement of public funds, abuse of office, institutional mismanagement, money laundering, and maladministration.
Directives Issued to Justice Minister and URSB Board
Lady Justice Batala formally directed Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs Norbert Mao to interdict Kainobwisho immediately. To support this mandate, the Inspectorate cited Section 13(6) of the Inspectorate of Government Act alongside Article 230 of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, which empowers the Ombudsman to issue necessary directives during ongoing investigations.
“In the instant case, public interest demands that while investigations against the above officer are still ongoing, she should be suspended from exercising the powers and functions of her office,” the Inspectorate stated.
Mao was further instructed, in consultation with the URSB Board, to put interim arrangements in place to maintain uninterrupted service delivery at the bureau. Simultaneously, URSB Board Chairperson Francis Butagira received instructions requiring him to suspend three additional executives: Deputy Registrar General Alex Aganya, Commissioner for ICT and Innovations Arthur Kwesiga, and Assistant Commissioner for Business Registration Services Walid Kule. The board must similarly establish interim coverage for these positions to prevent operational gaps.
Suspension of Kyankwanzi Executive Training
Alongside the management suspensions, the Inspectorate ordered Minister Mao to halt a scheduled URSB residential executive training program at the National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi.
The program, originally slated to run from Sunday, August 16, to Friday, August 21, 2026, will remain suspended until the corruption investigations conclude or the Inspectorate issues further guidance.
Escalation Following Presidential Audit Directive
The IGG’s interventions mark an escalation in an institutional crisis that traces back to an internal dispute involving Commissioner for Business Registration Gilbert Agaba. That dispute subsequently prompted President Yoweri Museveni to issue a directive on July 24, ordering Kainobwisho, Kule, Kwesiga, and Aganya to step aside to allow an independent institutional audit.
President Museveni instructed the Inspectorate of Government to lead the inquiry with assistance from State House auditors Kawawa and Tumwiine. On Monday, August 17, URSB confirmed through Communications Manager Steven Douglas Baryevuga that an audit was underway in compliance with established legal frameworks, maintaining that routine client services would continue without disruption. The latest directives from the IGG have now transformed those administrative leaves into formal interdictions as the multi-agency investigation proceeds.
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