Kampala, Uganda: A tense and closed-door State House meeting in September 2025 marked the decisive turning point that sealed the fate of Jennifer Bamuturaki as Chief Executive Officer of Uganda Airlines, following mounting concerns over governance failures, disputed aircraft procurement decisions and escalating financial losses at the national carrier.
Multiple government and aviation sources say the meeting, convened by H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, was attended by members of the Uganda Airlines Board and senior management. It reviewed a growing list of red flags, including unresolved audit queries, revenue leakages, controversial fleet decisions and emerging law-enforcement interest in the airline’s finances.
According to sources familiar with the engagement, President Museveni was visibly displeased with explanations offered by management. He reportedly declined to hear any formal presentation from Bamuturaki and abruptly ordered her to leave the meeting.
“Go away, I don’t want to see you,” Museveni is quoted as saying, before repeating the directive and compelling her to exit.
Insiders say the President told those present that he had already received adverse intelligence on the airline’s operations and was in possession of a Special Auditor General’s report detailing serious financial and governance lapses.
Although no public action followed immediately, officials say the encounter effectively ended Museveni’s confidence in Bamuturaki’s leadership. In the weeks that followed, the President declined to endorse any extension of her contract and instead directed that the position of CEO be advertised openly to allow a “competent Ugandan” to take charge.
That directive is now being implemented.
On Monday, Bamuturaki formally informed staff in an internal email that the Board would soon advertise the position of Chief Executive Officer, encouraging qualified employees to apply once the process is published.
“The Board will advertise the position of Chief Executive Officer shortly, and you are all encouraged to apply if you meet the required qualifications,” she wrote.
The communication confirmed that her tenure at the airline has effectively come to an end.
The leadership shake-up is unfolding alongside an active criminal investigation. The Uganda Police Force Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), working jointly with the State House Anti-Corruption Unit, has launched probes into alleged abuse of office, embezzlement of funds and false accounting involving Uganda Airlines officials.
In a letter dated January 7, 2026, CID demanded extensive procurement, revenue and banking records from the airline. The request includes Contracts Committee minutes approving Boeing aircraft purchases, procurement files for fuel suppliers and leasing firms, ticketing agency agreements, revenue accounting records, internal audit reports and expenditure linked to the launch of the London route.
The September State House meeting also scrutinised major financial losses accumulated under the current management. A special audit found that more than USD 9.2 million (about Shs35 billion) in service fees continued to be charged to passengers after the levy was scrapped in July 2023, with auditors finding no evidence that the money was banked.
Ticketing operations were flagged after audits showed that agencies linked to airline staff, including Nyanza Tours and Travel, controlled over 90 per cent of deeply discounted ticket classes, potentially suppressing airline revenue and breaching conflict-of-interest rules. Fuel procurement contracts and aircraft leasing arrangements were also cited as high-risk areas.
Officials say Museveni’s intervention reflects growing frustration that governance failures and financial leakages persisted at a taxpayer-funded airline he personally championed as a symbol of national pride.
CID investigations are ongoing, and neither Uganda Airlines nor Bamuturaki has issued a detailed public response to the allegations. Bamuturaki has previously denied wrongdoing, maintaining that management decisions were aligned with the airline’s business development plans.
If you would like your article/opinion to be published on Uganda’s most authoritative news platform, send your submission on: [email protected]. You can also follow DailyExpress on WhatsApp and on Twitter (X) for realtime updates.
