Four top Mbale district officials suspended over alleged corruption
The suspended senior civil servants include the District Health Officer (DHO), the Principal Education Officer, the District Inspector of Schools, and the Principal Human Resource Officer.
The Minister of Local Government Balaam Barugahara. (File photo)
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The Local government ministry has intensified its aggressive cleanup of regional administrations, ordering the immediate suspension of four senior technical heads in Mbale District.
The decisive move comes just days after the Ministry recalled the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of neighbouring Jinja District amid a high-level corruption probe.
In an official directive dated July 10, 2026, Local Government Permanent Secretary Ben Kumumanya instructed the Mbale District CAO to immediately interdict the top tier of the district's technical leadership following an executive investigation into alleged widespread administrative and financial malpractice.
The suspended senior civil servants include the District Health Officer (DHO), the Principal Education Officer, the District Inspector of Schools, and the Principal Human Resource Officer.
The blanket suspensions were triggered by a high-stakes stakeholder meeting recently convened in Mbale by Local Government Minister Balaam Barugahara.
During the tense session, local leaders raised severe operational indictments against the four department heads.
According to the Ministry, the officials are facing serious allegations, including gross negligence of duty, abuse of office, mismanagement of public resources, and possible financial impropriety.
The Ministry noted that these multi-departmental failures have "greatly compromised service delivery in the District," specifically crippling essential healthcare, primary education oversight, and human resource management for the local populace.
To ensure an unbiased probe, Permanent Secretary Kumumanya stated that the interdictions are necessary to "pave the way for investigations by the State House Anti-Corruption Unit (SHACU)and other relevant government agencies."
The specialised anti-graft bodies are expected to conduct forensic audits and field verifications across the affected sectors.
The CAO was strictly directed to enforce the disciplinary actions immediately under Section (F-s-) 14 of the Public Service Standing Orders, 2021, with Kumumanya labelling the directive an "urgent action."
Reflecting the severity of the crisis, the suspension orders were copied to the highest levels of government oversight, including the Minister of Local Government, the Inspector General of Government (IGG), the Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet, and the Mbale Resident District Commissioner (RDC).
The action in Mbale marks the latest escalation in a broader ministerial purge of local government officials, serving as a direct follow-up on the controversial recall of the Jinja District CAO, Lillian Nakamatte.
Just a day prior to the Mbale suspensions, on July 9, the Ministry recalled Nakamatte to its headquarters to facilitate an uninterrupted probe by SHACU.
Her recall followed a July 8 district council meeting convened by Minister Barugahara, where local leaders tabled a litany of grievances against her.
Jinja District Speaker Simon Kibombo led the charges, accusing Nakamatte of abetting corruption, withholding critical government project documents, and repeatedly ignoring council resolutions.
This was done despite the council previously resolving to sell the vehicle to prevent further financial loss. Furthermore, councilors accused the CAO of hiding official Bills of Quantities, deliberately obstructing the council's ability to monitor public spending.
Lavish projects
The Ministry's intervention in Jinja follows growing central government scrutiny over the district's misallocation of local resources.
Most notably, Minister Barugahara publicly criticised the district's massive multi-billion-shilling headquarters project in Magamaga village.
Barugahara argued that the economic scale of the project made little sense—particularly a planned council chamber designed to be larger than Uganda's national parliament building—while local health facilities and sub-county offices remain severely underfunded.
Compounding the friction, councillors expressed deep frustration over Nakamatte’s prolonged stay in the district. Stationed in Jinja since 2021, councillors argued that she has overstayed the typical three-to-five-year rotation window for top technical civil servants—a policy specifically designed to prevent institutional complacency and the formation of corrupt local networks.
In her defence, Nakamatte strongly denied the accusations, dismissing them as attempts to tarnish her professional reputation.
Nakamatte attributed the conflict to a fundamental misunderstanding of the public sector by newly elected councillors, who she claims lack clarity regarding the operational boundaries between political leaders and technical administrative officers.
Despite her objections, Kumumanya directed her to immediately hand over her office to her deputy in strict accordance with Section F-d (4) of the Uganda Public Service Standing Orders, 2021.