Africa-Press – Uganda. President Museveni has dismissed his principal aide-de-camp along with several other close members of his presidential operations staff, the Press can reveal.
Sources say last week, the President directed State House directors to ensure that ADC – whose name is being withheld – “stops following me” and made it clear he did not want to see him anywhere in the building.
“I do not want to see him with my eyes anywhere,” Museveni reportedly said.
The President typically has multiple ADCs serving at the same time. Each ADC has specific roles, but the main one who literally stands right behind and escorts the President during public events and official functions is often called the principal ADC.
The others provide support and handle different duties related to security, logistics, and coordination.
This revelation follows Museveni’s recent public admission that corruption has “clogged” State House, with some officials accused of extorting up to Shs30 million from individuals seeking access to the President.
“People were paying money; Shs 30 million so that their letters reach me…. We arrested them,” Museveni disclosed.
While it remains unclear whether the sacked ADC and others were directly implicated in the corruption scandals the President lamented, sources suggest that intrigue and political positioning within the presidency have long fueled internal distrust, with staff members placing “their own” around the President.
A notable incident occurred in Moroto in 2023 involving then-ADC Lieutenant Colonel Robert Mugabe Koch.
After returning from studies abroad, Koch was allegedly frustrated by being sidelined without the President’s knowledge. Museveni was reportedly surprised to see a new ADC in his service while Koch had been expected to resume his loyal duties.
The President called on Special Forces Command (SFC) commanders for explanations, only to be told Koch was not around.
He personal contacted Koch and that learned the ADC who had served him since 2012 had returned a month prior.
“This is when the President shook up the SFC top brass. He fired them just an hour later, and Koch was returned to his side,” a source explained.
However, following Koch’s promotion and redeployment in 2023 as commander of the UPDF 503 Division based in Moyo, the same ADC officials had attempted to replace Koch with bounced back.
That was until last week’s awkward dismissal.
Corruption rot
Museveni’s candid admission about the State House system came with sharp words describing it as “dead” and “clogged by parasites,” highlighting that individuals pay bribes to intermediaries to get their letters or requests through to him.
The 2024 investigations referenced by Museveni led to the arrest of several senior State House officials, including Lt. Vicky Munaaba, who managed correspondence for the Presidential Adviser on Military Affairs
Others were Rose Nalunga, a private secretary accused of leaking classified information; Corporal Moses Kebba, a switchboard operator; and businessman Michael Christopher Ayeranga, implicated in circulating an unofficial appointment letter.
These events reinforce longstanding public allegations that access to the President is often contingent on bribery, with even prominent investors claiming they had to pay intermediaries close to Museveni to secure audiences.
Museveni also revealed how the breakdown of trust in official channels has driven some citizens to bypass government officials and instead approach his family members directly.
He cited his daughter Natasha Karugire.
He recounted how Marcella Karekye, a State House official, is often approached by desperate citizens who believe she might facilitate access to the President.
Yet, even she defers to Natasha, underscoring the systemic rot.
Mr Museveni did not say in hai public message that he had drained the swamp but often the unspoken instruction is that he is not happy and those responsible would be tasked with sweeping the dust away.
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