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Company without graders gets Shs 400bn Unra deal

September 22, 2021 by THE OBSERVER TEAM

The fate of the 92km Muyembe-Nakapiripirit road hangs in balance after Turkish contractor, Polat Yol Yapi, failed to beat the...

Mafia swelling street kid numbers in Kampala

September 22, 2021 by Polline Nangobi & Joselyn Nakitto

In a taxi along Bombo road in the traffic jam, a child comes to a passenger’s window asking for money. “Auntie...

Covid cash: how the poor manage their budgets

September 22, 2021 by John Vianney Nsimbe

When the prime minister of Uganda, Robinah Nabbanja, started the distribution of the Shs 100,000 ($28) Covid-19 lock-down relief back...

Patient attendants steal in hospitals – MP

September 22, 2021 by Zurah Nakabugo

A string of commonplace petty crimes in public hospitals are committed by patient attendants, Dr Charles Ayume, the chairman of...

  • How Museveni reaped from 9/11 terror attack on USA

    After the 9/11 al-Qaeda attack on New York that killed almost 3,000 people, then US president George W Bush launched the 'freedom agenda', a program he hoped would be critical in promoting democracy as an alternative to tyranny across the globe.

  • Sudan blames foiled coup attempt on former president Bashir

    A coup attempt thwarted in Sudan Tuesday was planned by military and civilian operatives associated with former President Omar al-Bashir, the country’s prime minister said in a televised statement.

  • Court summons Kyagulanyi over fraudulent admission to Makerere University

    The Law Development Centre court in Kampala has summoned National Unity Platform president and former presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu to appear in court and take plea on charges of obtaining false registration to Makerere University. The summons issued by grade one magistrate Augustine Alule, require Kyagulanyi to appear before his…

  • Sudan army thwarts attempted coup

    Sudanese authorities have foiled an attempted coup, the army said today Tuesday, warding off a challenge to a civilian-military council that has run the country since Omar al-Bashir was overthrown in 2019. A civilian member of the ruling council told Reuters the situation was under control after the attempted coup overnight…

  • Masaka court grants bail to MPs Ssewanyana, Ssegirinya

    The High court in Masaka has granted bail to MPs Allan Ssewanyana (Makindye West) and Muhammad Ssegirinya (Kawempe North). The two MPs were arrested on September 7 after they were summoned to Masaka central police station over the killings in the greater Masaka area that claimed over 30 lives. These…

  • Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines reserved for Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono

    The ministry of Health says the 1,674,270 doses of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine received yesterday from the US government will be administered only within Kampala, Wakiso and Mukono areas. Dr Alfred Driwale, the program manager of Uganda National Expanded Program on Immunization (UNEPI) says the Pfizer vaccine doses will be limited…

  • Money seized from Equatorial Guinea VP to pay for COVID-19 vaccine

    The US Department of Justice (DOJ) says it will use money from assets seized from Equatorial Guinea vice president and first son, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, which Obiang obtained through corruption.

  • Rwanda court finds ‘Hotel Rwanda’ movie hero guilty of terrorism

    Rwanda’s High court has sentenced Paul Rusesabagina of “Hotel Rwanda” Hollywood movie fame to 25 years in prison after finding him guilty on terrorism-related charges. Rusesabagina, 67, has denied the charges. He has 30 days to appeal the sentence. The court convicted and sentenced the hotelier-turned-activist on Monday following a trial…

  • MPs clear govt to borrow Shs 529bn for construction of 116 schools

    The parliamentary education committee has approved a Shs 529 billion loan for the ministry of Education to construct schools in several sub-counties. According to the ministry, 116 schools will be constructed, out of which, 84 schools will be in non-refugee hosting districts while 32 new schools in the refugee-hosting districts. At…

  • US donates to Uganda 1.6m doses of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines

    Uganda has received a donation consignment of more than 1.6 million doses of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine from the United States. This is the second consignment of COVID-19 vaccines that the Biden administration has sent to Uganda. The first, which arrived on September 6, comprised 647,080 doses of the Moderna vaccine…

  • Kiteezi parish priest Sekikiziyivu suspended over sale of church land

    An Anglican priest has been suspended for alleged involvement in the illegal sale of St Andrews Church land in Kiteezi in Gayaza, Wakiso district. Rev Semei Sebina Sekiziyivu, the parish priest of St Andrews Church was suspended from conducting priestly duties pending investigations into accusations of illegal sale of church…

  • Govt orders districts to vaccinate teachers by end of September

    The ministry of Health has issued an order giving local governments until the end of this month to vaccinate all teachers and students above the age of 18.According to a circular addressed to all local governments and signed by the director general of health services, Dr Henry Mwebesa dated September…

  • COVID-19: UAE suspends Ethiopian Airlines over travellers from Uganda

    The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has barred Ethiopian Airlines from operating flights in its country over COVID-19 restrictions imposed on travelers from Uganda. Ethiopian Airlines operates Entebbe-Dubai flights via Addis Ababa. However, this arrangement is being tested by the latest UAE restrictions because direct flights to Dubai last an average of…

  • Angry PM Nabbanja terminates Shs 1.8bn Kyegegwa road contract

    Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja has terminated a Shs 1.8bn contract for the construction of a 42-kilometre road in Kyegegwa district over shoddy works. 

  • Guinea junta vows not to bow to pressure to release ousted president

    Guinea's junta has said it will not bow to pressure from West African leaders to allow ousted President Alpha Conde to leave the country.

  • Nations hoarding COVID vaccines could send world back to square one - WHO

    The World Health Organization (WHO) is warning that COVID-19 vaccine export bans and hoarding by wealthy countries will prolong the pandemic in Africa, preventing recovery from the disease in the rest of the world.

  • EU launches Shs 17bn food security programme for Karamoja

    Currently, six districts in Karamoja are classified to be in food crisis, with 30 per cent of the population (361,000 people) faced with high levels of acute food insecurity in the region.  With the exception of Amudat, Karenga and Nakapiripirit districts that are in food stress, all the other districts have…

  • Parliament passes motion to rename Wampewo Avenue after BMK

    Parliament this week paid tribute to the late businessman Bulaimu Muwanga Kibirige commonly known as BMK and passed a motion to have Wampewo Avenue in Kampala city renamed after him. Wampewo Avenue stretches from the Jinja road roundabout adjacent to the ministry of Internal Affairs to Upper Kololo Terrace road, above…

  • Court dismisses petition seeking to block Kyambogo University graduation

    The High court in Kampala has dismissed an application seeking to block the 17th graduation ceremony of Kyambogo University.The decision arises from an application filed on September 14 by 45 students who sought a halt to the graduation ceremony fixed for next week, September 21-23, because their names were missing…

  • Jinja police officer sent envelope containing bullet and threatening leaflets

    Police in Kiira region is investigating circumstances under which Asuman Malinga, a former special police constable, received a khaki envelope containing one bullet for an AK-47 riffle, a cartridge and two threatening leaflets.

  • DNA report confirms body retrieved from Onebe's septic tank is of his wife

    DNA analysis has allegedly confirmed that the decomposing body retrieved from Francis Onebe's septic tank in Munyonyo is that of his wife Immaculate Asio Onebe, who went missing on January 6 this year. 

  • Somali President suspends Prime Minister’s powers

    Somalia’s President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, known as Farmajo, has suspended the powers of Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble in the latest power struggle between the two leaders.

  • Two UPDF soldiers injured after ramming into train in Kireka

    Two UPDF soldiers have been rushed to hospital in critical condition after a vehicle they were traveling in rammed into a moving train. The accident occurred at around 7 am on Thursday at the Kireka railway crossing.

  • Man jailed for using fake Ugandan passport to enter Singapore after 25-year overstay in China

    A Singaporean man who decided to return to Singapore from China using an illegally obtained Ugandan passport has been jailed for four months today Thursday. Leng Choun Keong, 50, left Singapore for China in 1995 and his Singapore passport expired in 2005, but Leng did not renew it. He also did…

  • 45-year-old man killed over Shs 1,000 in Pader bar brawl

    A 45-year-old man in Pader district has succumbed to head injuries he sustained during a fight over Shs 1,000 in a bar. Walter Okello, a resident of Lapul sub-county was reportedly hit on the head with a big stick by his colleague Francis Opio while drinking alcohol in a bar in…

  • DPP takes over Ham's case against DTB officials

    The legal battle between businessman Hamis Kiggundu and Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) has had several twists over the past year, with the latest taking a criminal dimension and has sucked in the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to investigate alleged fraud by top-level DTB officials.

  • Uganda deports 15 Rwandan nationals

    Uganda has deported 15 Rwandan nationals who have been under detention. The Rwandan nationals were deported through the Uganda, Rwanda border of Mirama Hills in Ntungamo district on Wednesday.

  • 157 Ugandan enroll for HIV vaccine trial

    A total of 157 Ugandan volunteers have so far enrolled in an HIV vaccine study in Masaka aimed at assessing the effectiveness of a trial vaccine against the virus.

  • Archbishop Jonah Lwanga to be buried on Monday

    The late Metropolitan Jonah Lwanga will be laid to rest on Monday next week, the Orthodox Church has announced. Sylvestos Kisitu, the Orthodox Bishop for Gulu and Eastern Uganda announced at a press conference he jointly addressed with the Information and National Guidance minister, Chris Baryomunsi on Wednesday evening.

  • Carrefour takes over six Shoprite stores

    United Arab Emirates-based investor, Majid Al Futtaim has through his supermarket brand Carrefour, taken over the retail stores operated by Shoprite Checkers Uganda Ltd, as the South African retailer quits the country.Majid Al Futtaim, a leading investor in shopping malls, communities, retail and leisure across the Middle East, Africa and…

  • State now slaps terrorism charge against Ssegirinya, Ssewanyana

    The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Jane Frances Abodo has amended the charge sheet against the Makindye West MP, Allan Ssewanyana and his Kawempe North counterpart, Muhammad Ssegirinya to include terrorism. 

  • Uganda’s historical artifacts to be repatriated from England

    Uganda’s artifacts will be repatriated from the University of Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology thanks to a project titled "Repositioning the Uganda Museum.” The project received a grant worth $100,000 (about Shs 352m) from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for the task undertaken by Derek Peterson, a professor of…

  • Why state slapped murder on Ssegirinya, Ssewanyana

    Hours after the state dramatically tied them to a spate of murders in Greater Masaka region last week, members of parliament Allan Ssewanyana and Muhammad Ssegirinya found themselves behind bars in Kitalya prison – accused of three counts of murder and attempted murder.

  • Opposition plans new resistance against NRM

    After a few months of political calm, opposition figures and activists are holding meetings to launch a systematic challenge to President Yoweri Museveni’s sixth term administration. In meetings chaired by Justice Forum, opposition figures say President Museveni has been given a carte blanche to do as he pleases without any challenge since…

  • 3 arrested while trying to buy 2-month-old baby at Shs 20m in Nalukolongo

    The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) Kireka is holding three suspects on allegations of attempting to buy a two-month-old baby for a suspected South Sudanese trafficker in Kampala. The suspects are Gerald Akankwasa, a Wakiso based medical doctor, Kenneth Kayondo and Christine Nambi. Police detectives picked up the trio from Royale Motel…

  • Second body found in Onebe's septic tank in Munyonyo

    The husband and prime suspect in the case of missing businesswoman Immaculate Mary Blessing Onebe, Francis Onebe has denied ever employing a housemaid after police discovered a second body inside his septic tank at his home in Munyonyo.  Onebe’s home is on Kaggwa Rise which falls under Munyonyo parish, not in…

  • Tribute to Dr Hajj BMK, an African business colossus

    In a society with many tycoons with shady paths, Dr Hajj BULAIMU MUWANGA KIBIRIGE [BMK] stood out for being forthright and honest. A trendsetter in business, he will be remembered for creating opportunities for others, writes Denis Jjuuko. 

  • Covid vaccines won't end pandemic - WHO

    Covid jabs will not end the pandemic and leaders should prepare to adjust their vaccine strategy to deal with the virus in the long-term, the World Health Organization’s director for Europe has warned.Dr Hans Kluge said new strains of Covid will continue to emerge and the virus will remain with…

  • Repeat adolescent births worrying – study

    A recent research has issued grim warnings about the wellbeing of thousands of girls in Uganda, as repeat adolescent births fail to drop in nearly three decades.

  • Onebe denies body found in his septic tank is of his missing wife

    Detectives investigating the kidnap and murder of Muyenga businesswoman, Immaculate Mary Blessing Onebe, have decided to conduct DNA tests after her husband, Francis Onebe, insisted that the body picked from the septic tank at their matrimonial home is not of his wife.

  • Busoga MPs demand return of kingdom property

    Members of the Busoga parliamentary caucus are demanding for the return of or compensation for kingdom property taken by the government in 1966 following the abolition of cultural institutions.The nine MPs led by Stephen Kisa, the MP Luuka South MP and chairperson of the caucus, re-echoed the call in a…

  • Karamoja set to get 7 new police posts as insecurity rises

    With support from the European Union (EU), police is set to construct seven new community police posts in Karamoja sub-region due to increased insecurity.  The police posts are going to be constructed in 7 of the 9 districts which make up the Karamoja sub region which are Abim, Amudat, Karenga, Kotido…

  • Nakatunya prison in Soroti closed over surge in COVID-19 cases

    Soroti city authorities have closed Nakatunya prison for two weeks after 101 inmates and staff tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The facility was closed last week to allow fumigation of the facility and treatment of the affected inmates and staff.

  • Opposition pin IMF on big lending to Uganda

    The Leader of the opposition in Parliament (LoP) Mathias Mpuuga has held discussions with the country representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Izabela Karpowicz, and the donor agency’s chief of mission, Amine Mati. The meeting, held under the auspices of the Parliamentary Forum on the IMF and the World Bank…

  • Malawi businessman convicted for 2019 attempt to bribe judges

    Malawi's High court has found a businessman guilty of attempting to bribe Constitutional court judges who were ruling on the disputed 2019 presidential election. Thomson Mpinganjira, who owns a commercial bank in Malawi, was arrested in January 2020 by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), after the High court's chief justice, Andrew Nyirenda…

  • Arua data entrants apologize over theft of Covid-19 relief cash

    At least 8 data entrants from Arua city who fraudulently obtained COVID-19 relief cash meant for vulnerable people have apologized and requested to refund the money. The data entrants were today appearing before the Public Accounts Committee on Local Government chaired by Bardege-Layibi MP, Martin Ojara Mapenduzi alongside Arua city officials. The…

  • Rustlers 'roast & eat' one of DPP's stolen cows near presidential lodge

    The cowhide of one of the 158 heads of cattle that the rustlers audaciously stole near the presidential state lodge in Karamoja over the weekend has been found.The exhibit was found by relatives of the director of public prosecution (DPP) Jane Frances Abodo, just about 100 metres from the Morulinga presidential state…

  • Shs 25bn Moroto Market develops cracks before handover from contractor

    Moroto municipal officials have postponed the date for receiving the newly built market because of unexplained cracks, especially on the second floor. The government redeveloped Moroto Central Market under the Markets and Agriculture Trade Improvement program (MATIP) with co-funding from the Arab Bank of Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) at Shs…

  • BMK laid to rest at Nkoowe Muslim Cemetery

    Businessman Bulaimu Muwanga Kibirige (BMK) has today been laid to rest at the Nkoowe Muslim Cemetery in Wakiso district. BMK breathed his last on Friday morning at Aga Khan Hospital Nairobi, Kenya, ending his six-year battle against prostate cancer, a disease he was diagnosed with in November 2015. Upon diagnosis, the…

  • Karamoja mourns death of Hotel Africana Moroto founder, BMK

    The business community and leaders in Karamoja sub-region have joined other Ugandans to mourn the death of inspirational Ugandan entrepreneur Hajji Bulaimu Muwanga Kibirige (BMK). Kibirige who died on Friday in Nairobi and was laid to rest today, built Hotel Africana Moroto Limited, the first star-rated hotel in Moroto. Micheal Lote, Moroto district…

  • Cattle rustling dents farming in Karamoja as dam lies idle

    The increased cases of cattle rustling in the Karamoja sub-region by the neighbouring Turkana tribe from Kenya as well as intrigue amongst the Karimojong has rendered the water valley dam built in Kaabong district inactive to serve its intended the purpose, writes ERNEST JJINGO.

  • Karamoja: LDUs shoot dead 18-year-old during routine morning jog

    Local Defence Unit (LDU) personnel in Karamoja have shot dead an upcoming long distance runner, claiming they mistook him for a cattle rustler running away from arrest.

  • KCCA to resume collection of passenger road user tax next month

    Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) is set to start collecting road user fees from passenger vehicles operating within its jurisdiction next month. A statutory instrument by the Local Government minister last year shows that vehicles with a passenger capacity of 7-20 people operating in Kampala will have to pay Shs 720,000…

  • Two more bodies discovered in Masaka

    Two bodies of boda boda riders have been found dumped in a bush in Kyabumba village, Masaka city.  Daniel Kimbugwe, the vice chairperson Buwunga sub county says that the bodies were discovered by residents who had gone to collect firewood. Kimbugwe says that one of the deceased has been identified as…

  • Lukwago, Adeke appointed FDC deputy presidents

    Opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) president Eng Patrick Amuriat has appointed Kampala city lord mayor Erias Lukwago and the Soroti Woman MP Anna Adeke Ebajju as party deputy presidents.

  • Daring K'jong warriors kill one, steal 20 cows in raid near presidential lodge

    Suspected Karimojong cattle rustlers on Friday attacked a village near the presidential state lodge, killed one person, and also made off with 20 cows and 40 sheep. 

  • African Union suspends Guinea after coup

    The African Union said on Friday it was suspending Guinea after a coup in the West African country that saw its president Alpha Conde arrested.