In Buleega Village, Kapeeka Sub-county, Nakaseke District, a half-finished house stands as a painful reminder of the hardship that has beset Ms. Jane Kemigisha and her five children since the death of her husband, Mr. John Bosco Byamukama, in December 2023.
When visited, Kemigisha—a peasant farmer—was busy sorting vegetables outside her home. Wearing a lesu and a headscarf, her face bore the signs of ongoing grief. “I never went to school, and now my children are being denied that chance. Their father used to support them, but since his death, the money sent in his name has been misused,” she said tearfully.
Click here to join our WhatsApp Group and Receive Daily News
Ms. Kemigisha and Byamukama were together for 19 years. During their marriage, they owned a home in Lugoba, Kawempe Division, which they sold to buy land and start building a new house in Nakaseke. Seeking a better life for the family, Byamukama had moved to South Africa for work and was employed by Takealot, an online store. Tragedy struck on December 22, 2023, when he died in a road accident in Johannesburg. His body was returned and buried in Bushenyi District in early January.
Following his death, Byamukama’s colleagues in South Africa raised Shs20 million to support his family. However, since Kemigisha lacked a national ID and a bank account, the funds were sent to her brother-in-law, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Paul Mugisha Kansiime.
Shortly after receiving the money, ACP Kansiime demanded a DNA test to verify the paternity of the children. The widow borrowed money to take the children to the Government Analytical Laboratory. The results, which arrived six months later, indicated that the three older children were fathered by Byamukama, but the youngest twins were not.
Despite these results, ACP Kansiime has refused to release the funds, claiming that he used part of the money to pay off burial debts and complete his brother’s unfinished house. He also alleges that the children are unruly and that the widow had questionable behavior, which caused strain in the family even before Byamukama’s death.
Kemigisha, however, insists the money was meant for her children’s education. She says she has reported the matter to various police departments, including the Police Professional Standards Unit (PSU) and Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), but no action has been taken. Attempts to sell land for her children’s school fees were blocked by Kansiime, who allegedly used his influence in the police to send officers and halt the sale.
With no source of income, her children—two of whom should be in Senior Five and Four—now work as laborers on construction sites for as little as Shs5,000 a day to provide food and medicine for the family.
Kansiime admits to receiving the Shs20 million but maintains he owes the family nothing. He accuses the widow of trying to “disorganize” his late brother’s household and denies responsibility for the children’s welfare, claiming they must apologize to him before receiving any support.
Family friend Mr. Vincent Nuwagaba has called on higher authorities to intervene. “Even if the twins were not his, the other children are. That money was donated for them. Why are they being made to suffer?”
Kemigisha and her children now survive on the goodwill of their neighbors. With no school fees, a stalled house, and a brother-in-law who wields immense power, their future remains uncertain.
Also Read: Amama Mbabazi’s Daughter Wanted Over Unpaid Shs 450m Loan
