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Kampala – Uganda’s science and innovation sector is reeling from mounting allegations of institutional decay, political interference and shadowy management of multi-billion-shilling projects, as fresh details emerge linking recruitment chaos at the Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST) to a wider governance crisis at the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI).
At the centre of the storm is Science Minister Dr Monica Musenero, accused by critics of tightening her grip on UNCST, sidelining governing councils and handpicking loyalists.
Executive Secretary Job Wars
According to a whistleblower report RedPepper obtained, for nearly five years, UNCST has operated without a substantive Executive Secretary (Accounting Officer), despite two competitive recruitment processes that reportedly produced clear winners. It all started in 2021 when Dr Peter Ndemere, the then Executive Secretary of UNCST opted to retire.
To fill the vacuum, a rigorous and transparent interview process was reportedly conducted by the then UNCST Governing Council (Board).
Dr. Julius Ecuru (then Assistant Executive Secretary) emerged the best candidate and was highly recommended by the board for immediate appointment.
Curiously, the appointment was abruptly halted by then incoming Science, Technology and Innovation Minister, Dr. Musenero, on grounds that UNCST was due for restructuring.
Dr. Ecuru was informed to hold on until after the restructuring process. That restructuring never materialised and Dr. Ecuru was never appointed and the position of Executive Secretary remained vacant until this year in October.
According to a whistleblower report, a few months ago, a second search process for Executive Secretary was initiated and interviews held.
Again, Dr. Ecuru, the Deputy Executive Secretary-emerged the best- but once again, the board’s recommendation was reportedly rejected by Musenero. The minister reportedly argued the candidate “lacked vision” and appointing him would be a “big mistake”. She ordered a fresh search.
On October 15, 2025, the situation took a dramatic turn when Dr David Serukka, then serving under the STI Secretariat in the Office of the President, was appointed with immediate effect as Acting Executive Secretary.
Serukka previously served as Director of Public Health and Environment at Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA). He left in 2021 after President Museveni refused to renew his contract despite intense lobbying.
Musenero went on to remove Dr. Ecuru from his long-serving Deputy Executive Secretary, effectively kicking him out of UNCST for once and all.
“The Deputy Executive Secretary [Dr.Ecuru] was not only denied appointment to the Executive Secretary’s role but removed from the acting Accounting Officer’s role; a role he had acted in for close to 5 years including a period close to 1 year when UNCST operated without a Board because the Board’s term of office was abruptly terminated by the same Minister. One wonders what motivated the good Minister into rushing to terminate the terms of office of the Board if she was not ready to appoint a new one immediately and also why she was not able to notice the lack of vision of the Deputy Executive Secretary during the one year he was directly under her supervision!” a whistleblower who has since lifted the lid on Science Ministry rot wonders.
Critics say the move symbolised the final collapse of institutional autonomy at UNCST.
Critics further argue that the latest appointment reinforces a pattern in several government MDAs where board decisions are overruled, leaving staff demoralised and recruitment processes appearing futile.
To them, it was the final proof that boards interview, but others decide.
Officially, UNCST describes the Ex-KCCA boss appointment as a strategic move to strengthen leadership and partnerships across government, academia and industry, and to align science and innovation with national development priorities.
But critics say the optics are troubling. “How do you parachute in an accounting officer who was not even staff, while experienced internal leaders are pushed aside?” asked one senior scientist, requesting anonymity. “It sends a chilling message.”
Ironically, the man once blocked from the top job, Dr Julius Ecuru, has since moved on. He now heads BioInnovate Africa, a respected regional innovation programme, reinforcing perceptions that UNCST may have lost valuable expertise through prolonged infighting.
Meanwhile, ordinary staff remain anxious. With recruitment freezes, acting appointments and unclear reporting lines, morale at the secretariat is said to be fragile. Scientists worry that internal instability could undermine UNCST’s core mandate of regulating research, ethics and innovation at a time when Uganda is pushing industrialisation and technology-led growth.
UNCST oversees billions of shillings in programmes, grants and facilities meant to transform Uganda’s innovation ecosystem. Observers warn that prolonged infighting risks turning a science regulator into a political battleground.
As one senior academic put it: “Science thrives on transparency, merit and continuity. When leadership becomes a chess game, innovation suffers.”
For now, Dr Serukka has officially taken the reins — warmly welcomed by the 5th Council — but the whispers have not died down. Whether his tenure calms the storm or deepens the rift may determine not just careers, but the future credibility of Uganda’s science governance.
MORE ROT
Beyond recruitment, deeper rot is alleged. Internal documents seen by RedPepper paint a picture of governing councils weakened or dissolved whenever they attempt oversight. In one case, in 2023, then UNCST council initiated a probe into a Sh1bn IT consultancy under the National Science, Technology, Engineering and Innovation Skills Enhancement Project (NSTEI-SEP) project.
The probe revolved around an allegation of irregular IT consultants’ engagement & expenditures to implement the Business Intelligence scheme at the Namanve Centre at an estimated cost of Sh1bn over a one-year period. The probe was allegedly later halted after ministerial intervention, with the investigation branded a “witch-hunt” against project coordinator Anthony Okimat.
Months later, the board’s term was too terminated.
“To the best of our knowledge, the Business Intelligence program implementation continued under the stewardship of the Project Coordinator but only God knows whether its intended purpose was achieved! It also did not come as a surprise that the term of office of all the Board members was terminated a few months afterwards,” reveals the whistleblower.
Fate of Sh430bn NSTEI-SEP Project Hangs in Balance
The National Science, Technology, Engineering and Innovation Skills Enhancement Project (NSTEI-SEP)—a USD115 million (about Sh430bn) project funded mainly by Chinese EXIM Bank loan — has become the symbol of everything critics say is wrong at the science ministry
This was a five-year project under Uganda National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST); a government of Uganda Agency established in 1990 with a clearly spelt mandate in the UNCST Act. The NSTEI-SEP is a USD115 million Project with the bulk of the funding (80%) coming from a Chinese EXIM Bank loan. The project implementation started in the FY 2019/2020 and as of now, the project is undergoing transition from project to operationalization of the facilities established under the project.
These facilities still require continuous GoU funding and if well managed should in the near future train a significant number of Ugandans to improve their livelihoods and household income, spur economic development, provide employment for many and generate significant revenue for the government to help in the loan repayment among other benefits.
The tangible facilities established under the NSTEI-SEP Project and they include: state-of-the-art-building in Namanve Industrial Park housing, a maintenance centre equipped to service and repair light and heavy automobiles such as SUVs, Sedan cars, trucks, pick-ups, graders, excavators, trailers, buses, cranes etc.
Others include a three floor storied building intended to provide office space and support to innovators and scientists in need of support and working space for a specified time period from where they are expected to develop capacity and later exit the facility as they continue operations on their own as new members move in to replace them.
The same project saw completion of a state-of-the-art building complex in Rwebitete in Kiruhura District, akin to the Law Development Centre (LDC) for lawyers; but this time for engineers with numerous units and workshops fitted with equipment and machinery meant to train, skill and reskill engineers and technicians through the first ever Factory Learning Model facility in Uganda. These facilities have provision for the following engineering hubs; Civil Engineering, Electrical engineering, Metallurgy, Automobile Engineering, Agricultural Mechanization, Design and Production Engineering, Heavy Equipment Construction, Design and production Engineering and among others.
These are equipped with over 300 pieces of engineering machinery and equipment for undertaking small, medium and large scale engineering projects. Currently a good number of these equipment is being rented out in the Albertine Graben area where preparation for commercial oil drilling is ongoing and the revenue from these operations are meant to be channeled to the consolidated fund as Non Tax Revenue.
However, the whistleblower wonders whether such a project now transitioning to operationalization stage will ever benefit Ugandans given the alleged rot surrounding it.
Even more controversially, NSTEI-SEP facilities have reportedly been renamed Engineering Development and Innovation Centre (EDIC) and informally shifted under the STI ministry — without a board, enabling law or approved structure.
According to the whistleblower, NSTEI-SEP, a UNCST Project started long before Musenero came to office but seems to have now taken full control over from UNCST. To date, the project has remained on the Public Investment Plan (PIP) and continues to receive funding from the government allegedly without any proper supervision and oversight from the current Governing Council, because, according to the whistleblower, the Minister is so interested in the affairs of the NSTEI-SE project.
Insiders are wondering how a UNCST facility with all legal documentation in the names of UNCST just transitioned to STI-OP without following the due legal processes!
“As it stands, all the above facilities established under the NSTEI-SEP should have remained under UNCST supervision and oversight until an official communication is received to the contrary. The UNCST governing council comprises 32 members with the majority of them being eminent scientists.
At least five of the members are engineers with impeccable track records, necessary knowledge, skills and experience to oversee the successful operationalization of the facilities at Rwebitete and Namanve. The big worry is that these centers are currently not benefiting from the talent pool in the UNCST governing council and yet legally they are still under UNCST!” the whistleblower wonders and adds:
“I understand these established NSTEI-SEP facilities, now renamed EDIC, have a subvention created in its favour under STI-OP by the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economics Development (MoFPED) before establishing EDIC as a separate legal and an autonomous entity from UNCST. EDIC currently has no board, no approved organizational structure and no officially appointed staff and while the corridor talks circulating around is that EDIC is now autonomous of UNCST effective FY 2025-2026. It continues to use UNCST structures & bank accounts to draw funding and award selected procurement contracts on behalf UNCST on UNCST headed papers! EDIC also continues to use selected UNCST staff in its operations. The big question is if things go wrong at EDIC, who takes responsibility?”
With EDIC coordinator Anthony Okimat assuring those concerned that arrangements are being made to obtain a Presidential directive to operationalize these facilities, the whistleblower’s prayers are that investigations should first be carried out in this alleged irregularity before it’s too late.
The EDIC leadership is further accused of running the facility like a one-man empire, recruiting staff without interviews, contracts or approval, while paying them from project accounts.
Several individuals are said to have worked for years without formal appointment, enjoying foreign travel and facilitation. Meanwhile, 25 young Ugandan engineers, trained at a cost of Shs5 billion in Uganda and China, were allegedly sidelined, frustrated and forced out.
“The NSTEI-SEP facilities now EDIC is currently headed by the former NSTEI-SEP coordinator Anthony Okimat Opolot (a procurement professional with questionable people management skills). One wonders whether he is the right person to head the successful operationalization of such a facility! Does Uganda now lack scientists /engineers with people management skills to head a facility they refer to as the LDC of scientists/engineers?
The findings from UNCST showed that the coordinator never set any performance target nor appraised any of the project’s technical staff he led during the 5-year project tenure.
The coordinator has no respect for organizational policies and procedures and prefers to work with individuals brought on board by himself without being subjected to any form of interviews contrary to Public Service Standing Orders guidelines on recruitment of personnel.
He has for close to two years brought on board individuals without being subjected to UNCST recruitment mechanism and these individuals continue to be paid/facilitated irregularly from the NSTEI-SEP (UNCST) bank account at Bank of Uganda,” the whistleblower further alleges.
Some of these individuals named by the whistleblower include; Moses Agaba (referred to as the Technical Expert) who has been in the program for over two years allegedly without any formal appointment by UNCST and yet he has allegedly been part of NSTEI-SEP trips on UNCST budget to several countries including China, Germany, Brazil, South Africa and Kenya.
There is also Prisca Namutebi, reportedly recruited single handedly by the coordinator to serve as the HR consultant. She has reportedly held the role for over a year now and reliable information indicates that while she is abroad, four months now, she continues to draw facilitation from the NSTEI-SEP Account under the guise of working remotely without helping the entity with the numerous HR challenges it is currently facing!
“There are several other individuals who joined recently under dockets such as finance, corporate strategy, procurement, supplies, communication, IT etc, all brought on board illegally by one man who runs the entity like his personal business. Technically recruited project staff specifically recruited for business development, procurement, finance and other key tasks remain on “katebe”.”
The whistleblower further alleges that several financial irregularities were committed during Anthony Okimat tenure as a coordinator while implementing the NSTEI-SEP Project.
There are questions about how the ceiling board and redesign of the reception area of the newly constructed three storied building at Namanve facility shortly after the defect liability period of the facility had just expired was initiated. Key UNCST officials were reportedly denied signatory powers to project accounts. Funds allegedly remain parked across financial years, raising fears the accounts are being used as conduits for irregular transactions.
“Usually when the Government of Uganda Financial Year end is approaching and there are still unutilized funds on the Mother Ministry Vote 167; Science, Technology and Innovation-Office of the President and on the verge of being sent back to the consolidated fund, there has been reported cases of transfer of some of these funds to the NSTEI-SEP bank account. We have reliable information that some of these funds have been lying on the NSTEI-SEP bank account for more than one F/Y now. One wonders whether the NSTEI-SEP Account is not being used as a conduit for illegal transactions.”
“No wonder NSTEI-SEP bank statements are safeguarded and protected like precious diamonds! Only the NSTEI-SEP project coordinator (now turned EDIC head) and “trusted” UNCST staff (not even NSTEI-SEP staff) make up part of the NSTEI-SEP payment approval process. Not even the UNCST Deputy Executive Secretary (who acted for Ag. Accounting Officer for close to five years before his removal and replacement with Dr. David Serukka in October 2025) was a signatory to the NSTEI-SEP bank account. One wonders whether the Minister’s appointment of Dr Serukka was not meant to serve her self-interest at UNCST. The talks on EDIC being autonomous are only meant to be diversionary to deter the UNCST Board from paying attention to a number of irregular and illegal transactions being effected from the still very active NSTEI-SEP bank account.”
These allegations have not been independently verified, and no formal findings of wrongdoing have been made public.
Minister Fires Back
Allies of Dr Musenero dismiss the allegations as exaggerated and politically motivated, arguing that UNCST has long suffered from weak management, lax controls and resistance to reform.
They insist that central oversight was necessary to prevent wastage, that Dr Serukka’s appointment followed due process, and that flagship projects like EDIC are critical to Uganda’s industrialisation drive.
“You don’t dismantle entrenched systems without noise,” said one official close to the ministry. “The pushback was inevitable.”
Science at a Crossroads
What emerges is a troubling portrait of a sector meant to drive Uganda’s future — caught between reform and control, merit and muscle, vision and vendetta.
With billions invested, scientists demoralised and governance lines blurred, observers warn that Uganda risks turning science institutions into political battlegrounds rather than engines of innovation.
As one senior academic put it: “When boards are ignored, recruitment is futile and projects operate in the shadows, science stops being about evidence — and becomes about power.”
Whether the rot is confronted through independent investigation or buried under official statements may determine whether Uganda’s science ministry becomes a catalyst for transformation — or a cautionary tale of ambition undone by intrigue.
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