President Museveni has ordered the firing of **152 UCAA staff** over **corruption and unqualified recruitment**, triggered by an incident involving Maria Nyerere. An internal probe revealed **forged academic papers**, exposing deep-seated issues within Uganda’s Civil Aviation Authority.
KAMPALA, Uganda — President Yoweri Museveni has ordered the immediate dismissal of 152 employees from the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), citing widespread corruption and the recruitment of unqualified staff. The directive, issued in a June 25, 2025, letter, points to systemic failures within the government entity, culminating in a highly publicized incident where Mama Maria Nyerere, wife of the late Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere, was trapped in an airport lift for four minutes.
“I have received information that there is massive corruption in the UCAA in terms of several aspects, including recruiting unqualified people for employment there,” President Museveni wrote in his directive to Gen. Katumba Wamala, the Minister for Works and Transport. “As a consequence, serious inefficiencies cause problems that must not be allowed to continue.”
The President’s order specifically referenced the Nyerere incident as a catalyst for his decisive action. “One glaring embarrassing problem was, for instance, for Mama Maria Nyerere being trapped in an archaic lift for 4 minutes,” Museveni’s directive stated. “Some investigation was carried out, and 152 unqualified staff were identified. All these must be sacked, and so should those who recruited them. I demand immediate action.”
However, this presidential mandate appears to be the culmination of a longer-running crisis within the UCAA. Internal investigations dating back to 2024 have exposed deep-seated malpractices that predated the recent lift mishap.
Probe Reveals Forged Qualifications, Systemic Issues
An internal UCAA investigation, the findings of which were obtained by Daily Monitor, reveals that a staff academic qualification verification exercise in February 2024 uncovered widespread issues. Of over 2,600 documents reviewed, 82 were identified as forged academic credentials.
The UCAA report, submitted to Gen. Wamala, detailed how the internal audit was prompted by earlier discoveries during a November 2023 recruitment drive for aviation security staff, where “forgeries” were found among seemingly qualified candidates. This led to a broader review of existing employees’ qualifications.
“The exercise was accordingly carried out in three batches, totaling 2,688 academic documents, out of which 82 employees were found with one or two false academic documents,” the report stated. The UCAA acknowledged that verifying academic qualifications during recruitment or internal promotions had not been standard practice, with a primary focus on aptitude assessments and industry certifications.
The UCAA has faced public scrutiny for various alleged wrongdoings, including accusations of extortion. In January 2025, videos of staff extorting money from travelers circulated on social media, prompting the Deputy Speaker of Parliament to call for arrests and prosecutions.
Ministerial Response and Broader Concerns
Waiswa Bageya, the Permanent Secretary for Works and Transport, declined immediate comment, deferring to Minister Wamala. However, Fred Byamukama, the State Minister for Transport, confirmed the President’s directive and promised swift action.
“It is true there is a directive from the President about the unqualified staff at UCAA. This time we are going to act, and it’s with immediate effect because a presidential directive is law. UCAA is a very critical entity,” Byamukama stated.
Minister Byamukama also articulated a litany of governance issues plaguing the UCAA beyond forged academic papers. He cited incidents such as the burning of mosquito nets in cargo warehouses, leaking air conditioners, and a fire outbreak in a terminal due to a malfunctioning fan.
“Corruption, someone to get a contract, you have to pay. You can’t get a contract, you must pay higher to win the contract,” Byamukama alleged, pointing to systemic corruption in procurement. He also highlighted issues where “less qualified staff members hold positions meant for more qualified people, while those qualified are being supervised by incompetent people.”
Byamukama confirmed that both the ministry and UCAA conducted a “comprehensive investigation,” including verifying academic records with former schools, universities, and examination bodies, which led to the identification of the 152 individuals targeted by the President’s order.
UCAA’s Internal Dilemma
In a response to the Minister of State for Works and Transport, obtained by Daily Monitor, the UCAA acknowledged the discovery of forged academic papers and outlined its internal process. The authority stated that the forgeries “span a long time, some having been committed before or at the inception of UCCA and throughout the years.”
The UCAA’s internal report categorized the affected staff: 67 technical staff (including 21 seconded staff and four nearing retirement) and 15 non-technical staff. Technical roles affected include Aviation Security Supervisors, Screeners, Firefighting and Marine Rescue personnel, Airport Operations staff, Airworthiness inspectors, Air Traffic Management, Aeronautical Information Management, and Communication, Navigation, Surveillance, and Electronics engineers.
The UCAA expressed a “dilemma” regarding the costs of human development in the aviation sector, noting that many of the affected staff were trained and considered among their “best personnel in the industry.” The authority initiated a disciplinary committee that has heard 54 of the 82 affected staff, with the exercise expected to conclude within one month.
The UCAA stressed the need for “utmost confidentiality” due to the critical roles some affected staff hold in “safety and security deployments,” despite the majority being “lower-level staff.” The final resolution will await guidance from the ministry after the disciplinary committee’s recommendations.
