KYAMBOGO CHAOS! Investigation Exposes Cash Slip, Management Breakdown as Clock Ticks On Prof. Katunguka’s Final Term, Race for Successor Heats Up
A storm is raging at Kyambogo University, and this time it’s not just campus whispers—it’s a full-blown financial and administrative scandal laid bare by the Auditor General’s December 2025 report, with Vice Chancellor Prof. Katunguka – Rwakishaya firmly in the spotlight.
The revelations come at a politically charged moment, with Prof. Katunguka in the final stretch of his second and last term, set to expire next July. As intense lobbying quietly builds over who will take over the top job, the damning findings have raised serious questions about leadership, oversight, and whether those in charge have been asleep at the wheel while billions slipped through the cracks.
At the heart of the Auditor General’s findings is a trail of staggering financial mismanagement that paints a picture of an institution struggling to keep its books—and its house—in order. The university reportedly spent UGX 4.290 billion from the current year’s budget to clear domestic arrears that had not even been planned for, a move that exposes glaring weaknesses in budgeting discipline. Even more alarming is the mountain of accumulated domestic arrears now standing at UGX 31.223 billion, with a massive UGX 23.290 billion dating back to prior periods, suggesting that this is not a recent slip but a long-running problem that has been allowed to fester.
Revenue collection, a lifeline for any public university, also took a serious hit. Out of an expected UGX 77.307 billion from tuition, functional fees, and other services, only UGX 64.530 billion was actually collected, leaving a gaping shortfall of UGX 12.777 billion—about 16 percent. Insiders say this raises troubling questions about internal controls, enforcement, and whether the university is simply failing to collect what it is owed.
And then comes the bombshell of receivables. The university is sitting on UGX 42.636 billion in receivables, with UGX 16.632 billion dating as far back as 2016. That is money that should have been in the university’s accounts years ago, yet remains outstanding, a silent indicator of weak follow-up systems and possible institutional complacency.
Procurement processes, often a breeding ground for controversy, did not escape scrutiny. The report reveals that the university failed to prepare a multi-year procurement plan for a procurement worth UGX 2.026 billion, and even more controversially, went ahead to award a multi-year contract of the same value without parliamentary approval, in clear breach of requirements. For an institution expected to uphold public accountability, the implications are as serious as they are embarrassing.
The chaos deepens when it comes to contract management. For all forty-six contracts sampled during the year, worth UGX 7.537 billion, the university reportedly had no contract register to track progress. In simple terms, billions were committed without a proper system to monitor whether work was done, delayed, or even completed at all.
Assets, too, appear to have been left exposed. The university reportedly lacks an approved asset management policy and has no documented procedures for monitoring the use of non-current assets. There are no maintenance plans, no system to track maintenance history, and no clear way to forecast future needs. It is a scenario that experts warn could lead to rapid asset deterioration and financial losses.
Even more worrying is that non-current assets worth UGX 2.521 billion have no security measures such as insurance or surveillance cameras, leaving them vulnerable to theft or damage. Meanwhile, a massive 141.601 hectares of university land valued at UGX 2.3 billion remains unfenced, raising the specter of encroachment in a country where land grabbing has become a persistent threat.
Beyond finances and infrastructure, the academic core of the university is also under scrutiny. While the institution has made strides in research and innovation through its Business Incubation and Innovation Centre, the Auditor General found that staff participation in research remains low. Out of 418 academic staff, only 70—just 17 percent—published research during the period under review, placing Kyambogo behind institutions like Makerere and Mbarara Universities.
In another startling revelation, the university has been operating unaccredited study centres in Bushenyi, Paidha, and Soroti, raising questions about the quality and legitimacy of programs being offered to unsuspecting students.
And then there is the shadow of a forensic investigation that adds a criminal twist to the unfolding drama. The report notes that a case involving alleged financial loss linked to Sekalumba James, who reportedly drew double salaries from Kyambogo University and the Uganda Police Force since 2010, has been investigated by CID and marked as completed. The mere existence of such a case within the institution only deepens concerns about oversight failures.
All these findings land squarely at the doorstep of the Vice Chancellor, who is responsible to the University Council for the academic, administrative, and financial affairs of the institution. As pressure mounts and scrutiny intensifies, the question echoing across campus corridors and beyond is whether leadership has lived up to its mandate—or allowed systemic weaknesses to spiral into a full-blown governance crisis.
Yet amid the chaos, the university continues to project an image of progress, highlighting its efforts in strengthening research, innovation, and industry linkages. But for many observers, those achievements now risk being overshadowed by the weight of the Auditor General’s findings.
With the clock ticking on Prof. Katunguka’s final term and the race for his successor heating up, the stakes have never been higher. What should have been a period of transition is now turning into a moment of reckoning.
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