The long-running storm at the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) has finally reached the top, with Inspector General of Government (IGG) Lady Justice Naluzze Aisha Batala directing the immediate interdiction of Registrar General Mercy Kainobwisho as investigations into alleged corruption, abuse of office and financial mismanagement intensify.
The IGG has also ordered the interdiction of three other senior URSB officials, bringing the latest purge at the government agency to four top executives. The latest action follows an earlier directive that saw five senior officials, including Kainobwisho, sent on leave pending an audit and investigations into the affairs of the Bureau.
The Inspectorate of Government (IG) has this afternoon announced the interdictions saying the investigations concern allegations of embezzlement of government funds, abuse of office, institutional mismanagement, money laundering and maladministration at URSB.
The three officials affected alongside Kainobwisho are Alex Aganya, Deputy Registrar General; Arthur Kwesiga, Commissioner for ICT and Innovations; and Walid Kule, Assistant Commissioner for Business Registration Services.
The development marks a dramatic escalation of a controversy that has been building inside URSB for weeks and which has now drawn the attention of the highest government anti-corruption watchdog.
IGG Orders Kainobwisho Out
In her August 18 statement, Lady Justice Batala directed Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Norbert Mao to immediately interdict Kainobwisho while investigations continue.
The IGG explained that the decision was necessary to protect the integrity of the investigation and prevent possible interference by the officials under investigation.
“The interdiction is intended to ensure that the ongoing investigations are conducted without interference and in the public interest,” the IGG said.
She further stated: “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 IGG said the directive was anchored in Article 230 of the Constitution and Section 13(6) of the Inspectorate of Government Act, which empowers the Inspector General of Government, during the course of her duties or following findings, to issue orders and directions considered necessary and appropriate.
Kainobwisho has served as URSB Registrar General since December 2020 and is also the Bureau’s Chief Executive and Accounting Officer. URSB’s official profile describes her as responsible for leading the agency’s work in business formalisation, intellectual property protection, insolvency and receivership, access to credit through movable-property security interests and institutional transformation.
Her interdiction therefore removes the person at the centre of the agency’s administrative structure at a critical moment when investigators are examining its operations.
Three More Bosses Caught
The IGG’s directive did not stop at the Registrar General. In a separate directive addressed to URSB Board Chairman Francis Butagira, the Inspectorate ordered the interdiction of three senior officials pending completion of investigations into corruption allegations against them.
They are Aganya, Kwesiga and Kule. The Board chairman has been directed to make immediate interim arrangements to ensure that the functions of the affected officers continue without creating an operational vacuum.
The IGG has also directed the URSB Board, management and staff to cooperate fully with investigators and provide all information and support necessary to complete the probe.
The move effectively puts URSB’s top management under unprecedented scrutiny and signals that the investigation is not targeting one individual but is examining the wider management and institutional systems at the Bureau.
Museveni’s Earlier Order
The latest interdictions follow an earlier intervention in which senior URSB officials were ordered to stay away from their offices as an audit was instituted into the Bureau.
A July 24, 2026 letter from State House to Minister Mao, seen by The Investigator, carried the subject: “Embezzlement of Government Funds, Abuse of Office and Maladministration, Money Laundering and Institutional Mismanagement at the Uganda Registration Service Bureau.”
The letter directed that several officials go on leave until completion of the audit into URSB activities. Those named included Kainobwisho, Kule, Aganya and Kwesiga, among others.
The letter also directed the Inspector General of Government to lead investigations, assisted by auditors.
The earlier directive was significant because it placed the Bureau’s senior management under an administrative freeze while auditors and investigators examined its operations.
The latest IGG statement now formally moves the process from an audit and administrative leave into a full-fledged anti-corruption investigation involving interdiction.
Allegations Under Investigation
The allegations being examined are serious. According to the IGG, Kainobwisho is being investigated over alleged embezzlement of government funds, abuse of office, institutional mismanagement, money laundering and maladministration.
The wider controversy has also included allegations surrounding procurement, ICT contracts, financial controls and the management of revenue and registration services.
Reports preceding the IGG intervention indicated that concerns had been raised within URSB about alleged inflation of ICT contracts, irregular procurements, misappropriation of funds, fraudulent registrations, weak financial controls and revenue under-collection.
The allegations remain subject to investigation and should not be taken as findings of guilt against the affected officials.
The purpose of interdiction, in this case, is to allow investigators to examine the allegations without the officials continuing to exercise the powers of their offices.
URSB Training Halted
The IGG has also halted a planned executive residential training programme for URSB officials at the National Leadership Institute (NALI) in Kyankwanzi. The training had been scheduled to run from August 16 to August 21, 2026. Justice Batala directed Minister Mao to stop the programme until further notice. “The training is to remain suspended until the IG’s investigations are concluded or further guidance is issued,” the statement said. The decision adds another layer to the disruption at URSB, with the anti-corruption watchdog effectively freezing major management activities while the investigation proceeds.
Mao Given New Assignment
With Kainobwisho interdicted, Minister Mao has been directed, in consultation with the URSB Board, to establish interim arrangements to ensure that the Registrar General’s functions continue without interruption.
The IGG similarly directed the Board chairman to make interim arrangements for the three other interdicted officials. The objective is to ensure that ordinary URSB services are not paralysed by the investigation.
URSB is a key government agency responsible for business registration, intellectual property registration, insolvency and receivership and other statutory registration services. Its operations are therefore considered critical to businesses, investors and the wider economy.
Probe Could Widen
The interdiction of four senior officials could mark only the beginning of a much wider examination of the Bureau.
The July 24 letter specifically referred to “Kainobwisho, Kule, Aganya, Kwesiga and others,” suggesting that the audit and investigation were never limited to the four officials now formally interdicted. Earlier reports indicated that Commissioner for Business Registration Gilbert Agaba was also among officials sent on leave as the audit got underway.
This means that investigators could examine not only the conduct of individual officials but also the systems through which URSB handles procurement, contracts, finances, registration, revenue collection and administration.
The Inspectorate has urged all public officials to uphold transparency, accountability and integrity. The latest action also places the URSB Board under pressure to ensure that the investigation is not frustrated and that services continue normally.
For Kainobwisho, who has headed URSB since 2020, the interdiction represents the most serious challenge of her tenure. For the Bureau, it opens a new chapter in which its leadership, financial systems and administrative decisions are likely to come under intense scrutiny.
The IGG, however, has stopped short of declaring any of the officials guilty.
The investigation will have to establish whether the allegations are substantiated and whether individual officials bear criminal, administrative or financial responsibility. For now, the message from the anti-corruption watchdog is unmistakable: URSB’s top management is out of office as investigators move in.
Author Profile
- Charles Gazza Kodili is a seasoned journalist with over 20 years of experience in the media industry. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication. He’s currently the Chief Editor at the Investigator.
Charles can also be reached via; Tel: +256 774 108978
Email: [email protected]
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