KAMPALA - A simmering dispute within Uganda's government over the conduct of the national statistics agency's top official has escalated into a formal standoff between two cabinet ministers.
ICT and National Guidance Minister Justine Kasule Lumumba has given her counterpart at the Ministry of Finance, Henry Musasizi, a 30-day deadline to address the conduct of Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) executive director Chris Mukiza, according to statements reported this week.
Public Rebuke of Data Strategy
The rift traces back to an extraordinary public statement Mukiza issued on October 21, 2026, in which he described the newly launched National Data Strategy as an existential threat to the UBOS Act of 1998. In the statement, the statistics chief labeled the strategy illegal, irregular, redundant and of no value to the National Statistical System.
The comments came just one day after the strategy was officially unveiled by Joyce Ssebugwawo, the state minister for ICT, at a launch event held at Mestil Hotel in Kampala. Mukiza's public criticism of a government initiative championed by a sister ministry marked a rare and open breach of protocol within the executive.
Call for Attorney General's Involvement
Speaking in Luganda on Tuesday, November 3, Lumumba confirmed she had formally written to the finance minister seeking intervention. She said her letter asked Musasizi to examine the matter of the UBOS executive director publicly opposing work carried out by the ICT ministry and to convene a meeting that would also include the Attorney General.
The involvement of the Attorney General signals that the government views the dispute as a legal question, not merely an administrative spat. At its heart is a disagreement over how the National Data Strategy interacts with the legal framework governing UBOS, the body responsible for collecting and publishing official national statistics.
Why It Matters
The standoff raises questions about coordination between ministries and the independence of the statistical system, which underpins policy planning, budgeting and international reporting obligations. A public clash between senior officials over the legality of a national strategy could complicate the rollout of the data initiative and unsettle development partners who rely on credible official figures.
For now, all eyes are on the finance ministry, which has been handed a one-month window to respond and bring the parties together. Whether the deadline produces a resolution, or a deeper confrontation, will shape how Uganda's statistical institutions operate in the years ahead.
