The door at URSB just swung open.
Five senior managers at the Uganda Registration Services Bureau have been sent on leave as a corruption investigation widens. At the center is the Registrar General herself.
This is not a routine audit. It’s an IGG directive. And it’s about the systems that every company, NGO, and investor in Uganda must pass through.
Who Was Sent On Leave
According to the directive, these five are affected:
1. Mercy Kainobwisho – Registrar General
2. Gilbert Agaba – Commissioner, Business Registration
3. Walid Kule – Assistant Commissioner, Business Registration
4. Arthur Kwesiga – Commissioner, ICT
5. Alex Anganya – Deputy Registrar General, Finance and Administration
The Inspector General of Government, Lady Justice Aisha Naluzze Batala, directed the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Norbert Mao, to immediately interdict Kainobwisho.
The others are on leave pending the probe.
What The Allegations Are About
In a letter dated July 29, internal concerns were raised about 5 key areas:
1. Inflated ICT contracts – Money paid for systems development that may not match what was delivered.
2. Money laundering linked to the Non-Individual Register project – The database for companies, NGOs, and organizations.
3. Misappropriation of Bureau funds
4. Irregular procurements
5. Fraudulent registration – Companies or entities registered through irregular means.
Put simply: this is about the money, the systems, and the trust. URSB is where business starts in Uganda. If the register is dirty, every contract, loan, and investment that depends on it is questionable.
What URSB Is Saying
The Bureau has called for calm.
It says the audit is being conducted according to law and established procedures. It also says service delivery to the public has not stopped. More details will be given when appropriate.
That’s standard during an investigation. But for the 2000+ businesses that register, renew, or search at URSB every week, “business as usual” will be watched closely.
What This Means For Ordinary Uganda
For the business owner in Kyetumula: You still need to register your company, get your name search, file annual returns. The counters are open. But the people signing off at the top have changed. Expect delays as acting officers settle in.
For the boda SACCO: The Non-Individual Register is where you are recorded as a legal entity. If there were irregularities there, banks and donors will ask harder questions before giving you money.
For the job seeker: ICT and procurement jobs at URSB are now under scrutiny. That means less “who-you-know” and more paperwork, at least for now.
What This Means For The Elite
For lawyers and company secretaries: Every registration you did in the last 2 years may be reviewed. Due diligence just got harder. Clients will ask: “Is our company clean?”
For investors: URSB is Uganda’s front desk. Corruption allegations here signal risk. The government will have to move fast to restore confidence or deals will stall.
The Three Questions Everyone Is Asking
1. How deep does it go?
Five bosses are out. But contracts and procurements involve vendors, middlemen, and junior staff. Will the probe stop at the top?
2. What happens to the systems?
Arthur Kwesiga was Commissioner ICT. The allegations include inflated ICT contracts. Who now oversees the company register, the IP system, and the online portals? If systems crash, business crashes.
3. Can URSB reform itself?
URSB collects billions in fees. It’s supposed to be semi-autonomous and efficient. This probe is a chance to clean house, digitize properly, and publish procurement data. Or it’s a chance to wait for things to blow over.
The Bigger Picture
Uganda has spent years talking about “ease of doing business”. We digitized registration. We cut days.
But digitization without integrity just makes corruption faster.
This probe is about whether the institutions we built to fight graft can actually touch powerful offices. URSB is not a small agency. It’s where capital is legalized.
Sending the Registrar General on leave is a big step. Keeping service delivery running while that happens is the next big step.
Final Word
Five bosses are on leave. One has been ordered interdicted. The audit continues.
For now, businesses must keep filing. Citizens must keep watching.
The Non-Individual Register holds the names of every company in Uganda. The question now is: who was watching the people who watch the register?
The IGG has opened the file. Uganda is waiting to see what’s inside.
