A shirtless Matthew Bagonza in detention
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I The warning from Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba to Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development (PACEID) chairman Odrek Rwabwogo has dramatically escalated an already bitter public feud, with the army chief saying Rwabwogo risks arrest if he contacts any security officer without his permission.
“The next time Odrek dares to call any security officer without my approval he will be arrested,” Gen Kainerugaba wrote on X, formerly Twitter, in a statement that appeared to directly target the presidential adviser.
The warning came amid growing tensions surrounding PACEID and the reported arrest of Matthew Bagonza, a close aide to Rwabwogo and head of the committee’s secretariat.
Gen Kainerugaba confirmed Bagonza’s detention by posting a photograph of him on X, hours after reports emerged that security personnel had picked him up from his home in Entebbe. Bagonza has worked closely with Rwabwogo and has represented PACEID at both local and international trade engagements.
The CDF did not disclose where Bagonza was being held or identify the security agency responsible for his arrest.
Instead, his social media posts went further, making disturbing statements about the treatment of the detained PACEID official. Gen Kainerugaba wrote that he would ensure Bagonza was caned, saying: “I’ll make sure we cane Bagonza properly. He will receive the small number of 3,000 canes per week.”
In another post, he said, “We shall start caning his stomach tomorrow. He will lose weight after that.”
He also wrote that Bagonza’s death during the alleged punishment would be “a very good thing.”
The posts have added a new and highly personal dimension to the dispute, particularly because Rwabwogo is married to Patience Rwabwogo, President Yoweri Museveni’s daughter, making him Gen Kainerugaba’s brother-in-law.
The latest confrontation follows Gen Kainerugaba’s declaration that PACEID is an “illegal organisation”. He also accused some of its members of corruption and said arrests had begun.
PACEID was commissioned by President Museveni in March 2022 and operates under the Office of the President. Its mandate is to advise the President on exports and industrial development while helping Ugandan businesses access new markets and expand their international trade.
Rwabwogo has chaired the committee since its establishment, while Bagonza has played a central role in coordinating its activities. In July, Bagonza described Uganda Connect International Buyers’ Week as a platform intended to connect Ugandan producers with international buyers.
The arrest and the subsequent warning to Rwabwogo therefore represent a sharp escalation from institutional disagreement to an open confrontation involving senior figures close to the presidency and the country’s security establishment.
Gen Kainerugaba’s warning effectively places Rwabwogo on notice that his direct communication with security officials is no longer acceptable to the army chief unless authorised.
It also raises questions about the circumstances surrounding Bagonza’s detention and the fate of PACEID as the dispute unfolds.
For Rwabwogo, the message from the CDF is unequivocal: any further attempt to contact security officers without Gen Kainerugaba’s explicit approval, according to the warning, could result in his arrest.
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