Anti-Corruption Unit Arrests Two in Bushenyi Over Alleged Sale of Government Jobs

BUSHENYI, Uganda — The State House Anti-Corruption Unit has arrested two suspects in Bushenyi District as part of ongoing investigations into alleged corruption in the recruitment process of the District Service Commission.

The suspects, identified as Richard Nykyeire and Dan Taritweba, are accused of involvement in the illegal sale of government jobs.

The Unit’s Public Relations Officer, Mariam Natasha, confirmed the arrests, noting that investigations are still in their early stages as operations continue on the ground.

According to preliminary findings, the arrests are linked to a wider probe into corruption within the Bushenyi District Service Commission recruitment process.

Investigators suspect that job applicants were pressured to pay bribes ranging between UGX 7 million and UGX 25 million to secure public service positions.

The crackdown follows a petition filed by the Western Ankole Civil Society Forum, which raised concerns over alleged irregularities in the appointment of the District Service Commission. The petition claims that due process was bypassed and that bribery influenced the approval of the commission.

In response, the Public Service Commission directed the Bushenyi District Chief Administrative Officer to explain the allegations. In a letter dated February 13, the Commission’s Secretary, John Geoffrey Mbabazi, demanded a formal response and initiated an independent investigation into the matter.

A team has since been dispatched to the district to verify the claims and assess the integrity of the recruitment process.

The Bushenyi arrests are part of a broader anti-corruption campaign targeting irregularities in local government recruitment across the region. Earlier in March 2026, several senior officials in Mitooma District, including the Chief Administrative Officer and the District Service Commission Chairperson, were arrested over similar allegations of selling government jobs.

The Anti-Corruption Unit says it is working closely with the police and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions to ensure those implicated are held accountable.

Meanwhile, civil society groups have called for the entire Bushenyi recruitment process to be annulled and restarted to guarantee transparency, fairness, and merit in public service hiring.