Odrek Rwabwogo, a son-in-law of President Yoweri Museveni, has criticised Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba over the arrest and alleged mistreatment of one of his associates, Mathew Bagonza.
Mr Rwabwogo, who chairs the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID), said anyone suspected of committing an offence should be handled according to the law and given a fair trial.
His comments follow a series of social media posts by Gen Kainerugaba in which he accused PACEID of being an illegal and corrupt organisation used to siphon public funds.
Gen Kainerugaba also called on government ministries, departments, agencies and local governments to stop dealing with the committee.
“ALL MDAs and local governments are directed to suspend all dealings with the criminal organisation, PACEID. Failure to do so will be handled accordingly,” he wrote.
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Mr Rwabwogo, who is married to President Museveni’s daughter Patience Rwabwogo, rejected the accusations and urged Gen Kainerugaba to respect established legal procedures.
He warned that disregarding the law and established institutions could create indiscipline whose consequences would eventually affect everyone.
The latest disagreement follows previous public tensions between the two men. Last year, Gen Kainerugaba described Mr Rwabwogo as “Uganda’s biggest thief”, an allegation Mr Rwabwogo denied.
The two were later reported to have reconciled following the intervention of First Lady Janet Museveni.
Museveni ‘unaware’ of arrest
Mr Rwabwogo said that after Mr Bagonza was detained, he travelled to Entebbe and met President Museveni to discuss the matter.
According to Mr Rwabwogo, the president told him he had neither ordered nor been aware of the arrest.
“I met the President and the President told me that he was not aware and had given no order for the arrest of this officer [Matthew Bagonza],” Mr Rwabwogo said.
There has been no independent confirmation of Mr Rwabwogo’s account of the meeting.
Mr Rwabwogo said Mr Bagonza had worked with him since 2010 and described him as competent, honest and independent-minded.
“Matthew came to me as a young man in 2010 and has been with me, and we know him as competent, honest, independent-minded because everybody who works with me tends to be independent-minded,” he said.
He said that if Mr Bagonza was suspected of committing an offence, he should be brought before a competent court and allowed to face a fair and impartial trial.
Mr Rwabwogo also criticised the circumstances surrounding his detention, arguing that people accused of crimes remained entitled to dignity and protection under the law.
His comments followed a social media post by Gen Kainerugaba containing a photograph which appeared to show Mr Bagonza partially undressed.
Gen Kainerugaba claimed Mr Bagonza was being taught Swahili and said he would receive more than 3,000 strokes of the cane until he “aligns”.
Mr Rwabwogo said the arrest and treatment of any person presumed innocent should be lawful and humane rather than humiliating, arguing that respect for human dignity was required by Uganda’s Constitution.
Supporters of Gen Kainerugaba’s Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU) have also publicly criticised Mr Rwabwogo over his leadership of PACEID and his relationship with President Museveni.
Rwabwogo rejects PACEID allegations
Mr Rwabwogo separately rejected Gen Kainerugaba’s claim that PACEID was an illegal organisation and a conduit for corruption.
He said the committee was formally commissioned on 16 March 2022 and given a mandate to help Uganda increase exports and gain greater access to international markets.
Mr Rwabwogo argued that an institution created through a formal government process could not be abolished or declared illegal solely through an individual’s social media posts, regardless of that person’s position.
He said PACEID reports directly to President Museveni and produces quarterly and annual reports detailing its work with Ugandan entrepreneurs and exporters.
According to Mr Rwabwogo, the committee has helped develop and finance value chains involving at least 13 products in an effort to increase production, value addition and access to international markets.
Gen Kainerugaba’s allegations against PACEID have not been established by a court.
Mr Rwabwogo has previously criticised what he described as abuses of state power, including politically motivated arrests, intimidation and the use of security agencies against government critics.
Muhoozi names four people he says he cannot arrest
The dispute has also intensified following comments by Gen Kainerugaba about his authority to order arrests.
He said there were only four people in Uganda whom he could not arrest: his father, President Museveni; his mother, First Lady Janet Museveni; his uncle, Gen Salim Saleh; and his aunt, Jovia Saleh.
The remarks have added another dimension to an increasingly public dispute involving senior members of Uganda’s first family and questions over the use of state and military authority.
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