Two of President Yoweri Museveni’s trusted aides, Susan Kasingye and Lt Col Betty Agaba have been conspicuously absent from State House duties for months as a secretive probe bites into the President’s inner circle.
Kasingye, widely seen accompanying the President across the country and believed by insiders to be his legal aide, had been a constant fixture at State House events.
Lt Col Agaba, who replaced Major Knight Ikiriza as Museveni’s personal assistant was equally very prominent. But mid-this year, both stopped appearing alongside the Head of State without explanation.
The first public sign of their absence came during Museveni’s Parish Development Model (PDM) tour in the Rwenzori Region.
While addressing supporters, the President said he would send “one of my staff, Kasingye,” to gather their issues and brief him. Moments later, he abruptly corrected himself, saying Kasingye was “on leave” and he would dispatch someone else instead, a comment that immediately set tongues wagging in State House corridors.
According to a highly placed source close to Museveni, the pair is under investigation in a matter so sensitive that only top Special Forces Command (SFC) top leadership has full details.
“The President called them and informed them of an investigation and told them to leave until he concludes it,” said the official.
Another source, privy to the ongoing probe, hinted that money could be at the centre of the controversy, but stressed that the matter is “complex” and tightly guarded.
Efforts to reach Lt Col Agaba for comment were unsuccessful.
When conctacted Kasingye read WhatsApp messages from this website but did not respond. Neither State House nor the SFC was willing to speak on record.
War on ‘Parasites’
The mystery surrounding the two aides coincides with Museveni’s increasingly blunt public attacks on corruption within his own residence.
Over the weekend, a video circulated of a visibly angry President admitting that State House is dead “full of parasites and rotten people” who solicit bribes of up to shs 30 million just to deliver a letter to him.
“Why should Ugandans pay to see me?” the President asked.
The President has previously moved decisively against State House corruption. Last year, he ordered the arrest of several staff, including:
Lt Vicky Munaaba, from Lt Gen Proscovia Nalweyiso’s office.
Rose Nalunga, a private secretary accused of leaking classified information to wealthy Kampala businessmen.
Corporal Moses Kebba, a switchboard operator.
Michael Ayeranga, a businessman found with sensitive State House documents.
Museveni is also known for acting quietly and patiently in rooting out what he calls “rotten” elements.
Just last month, he ordered the sacking of 182 unqualified Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) workers and the dismissal of those who hired them.
The fate of Susan Kasingye and Lt Col Agaba remains unclear.
Given Museveni’s style of covertly dismantling unclean networks, observers believe the two could remain off the public stage for months as investigations unfold.
When contacted about the matter, the President’s press secretary, Sandor Walusimbi, expressed surprise, noting that he is not a soldier and has no insight into military affairs.
“I am not a military person; I don’t know what happens there. I only know what the President chooses to share with the public,” Sandor said before abruptly ending the call.
