By Spy Uganda
Uganda’s deepening payroll fraud crisis has now implicated high-ranking figures in the country’s law enforcement institutions, raising serious questions about internal accountability and recruitment systems within the public sector.
On Wednesday, the Anti-Corruption Court remanded Eldard Mugume, Commissioner for Human Resource Management in the Uganda Police Force, over allegations of illegally recruiting six individuals into the force more than a decade ago. The case is part of a widening government crackdown on ghost workers and fraudulent payroll practices that have cost the country billions in public funds.
Mugume, 58, appeared before Grade One Magistrate Esther Asiimwe and was charged with six counts of abuse of office under Uganda’s Anti-Corruption Act. The charges stem from alleged actions taken between February and March 2013, when Mugume reportedly bypassed established recruitment procedures to appoint six individuals as Inspectors of Police — undermining institutional integrity and violating Uganda Police Force protocols.
“These are not mere procedural lapses. They represent systemic breaches that threaten the credibility of our public institutions,” said a senior anti-corruption official familiar with the investigation but not authorised to speak on record.
A co-accused, Human Resource Officer Waidha Lillian, was named in the charge sheet but failed to appear in court. Magistrate Asiimwe issued criminal summons requiring her to answer to the charges.
The investigation, led by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, alleges that Mugume and his co-accused exploited their positions of authority to make arbitrary recruitment decisions for personal or political gain — a practice that has plagued multiple government agencies.
Mugume’s legal team attempted to apply for bail, but Magistrate Asiimwe declined to hear the application, noting she was only sitting in for the Chief Magistrate. Mugume was remanded until September 2.
If convicted, he faces up to seven years in prison, a fine, or both on each count.
Mugume’s case is just one among several high-profile prosecutions tied to a wider government-led investigation into payroll fraud and ghost workers across public institutions. The probe, ordered by President Yoweri Museveni in 2023, has uncovered a staggering scale of abuse.
According to a 2023 audit by the Auditor General, more than 10,000 suspected ghost workers — including deceased, retired, or long-absent individuals — were found to be drawing salaries totalling Shs53 billion annually. A subsequent joint verification exercise by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Public Service confirmed over 5,000 illegitimate cases.
In response, CID has arrested at least 12 senior officials from various agencies, including the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA), Entebbe Hospital, Makerere University Business School (MUBS), the Ministry of Works and Transport, Kyambogo University, and the Uganda Police Force itself.
“This is not a political matter,” President Museveni said earlier this year. “Fraud on the payroll is very easy to detect. We are going to go for these people.”
In a separate case before the same court, retired police officer Francis Oyet pleaded guilty to drawing over Shs20.6 million in salary after his resignation — yet another instance of the ghost worker problem within the force.
“I admit the facts as read,” Oyet told the court. He was remanded until August 21 for sentencing.
Analysts warn that while arrests and prosecutions may deter future abuse, the deeper challenge lies in rebuilding public confidence in civil service recruitment and payroll systems.
“The issue is not just corruption — it’s institutional decay,” said a governance expert at a local think tank. “When rules are routinely bypassed by senior officials, reform must go beyond punishment and address structural safeguards.”
President Museveni has since ordered the Ministry of Works to terminate 152 unqualified staff at UCAA and has criticised agencies for allowing public servants to draw multiple government salaries.
With high-profile figures like Mugume now in the dock, the government’s ability to follow through on reforms — not just investigations — will be closely watched by a skeptical public.
