Key Facts
—Who. Asadu Kisitu Kigozi, Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) Commissioner of Customs, was dismissed, with effect from Friday, 13 November 2026.
—Also out. James Abola, assistant commissioner for integrity, compliance and ethics, was dismissed the same day.
—Reported link. Clearing agent Timothy Segane, arrested on 25 August 2026, was remanded in custody on four corruption and customs charges.
—Unproven. The payment claims against Kisitu are allegations; he has not been charged in court, as far as we could confirm.
Uganda’s tax agency has fired the official who ran its customs service, two and a half months after a well-known clearing agent was arrested on suspicion of bribing a customs officer.
The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA), the government body that collects taxes and import duties, dismissed Commissioner of Customs Asadu Kisitu Kigozi, with effect from Friday, 13 November 2026. URA confirmed the dismissal but gave few details, saying it followed investigations into corruption-related cases.
Customs is where goods entering Uganda are cleared and taxed. The case matters to any trader, shipper or investor who moves goods into the country.
What Happened on Friday
James Abola, the assistant commissioner for integrity, compliance and ethics, was dismissed on the same day. Both men lost their jobs after internal disciplinary proceedings, and URA gave no details; the allegations below come from media reports of the internal charges.
Kisitu had been suspended in April 2026 while investigators looked into the allegations. He had worked at URA for more than 25 years.
How a Clearing Agent Fits In
A clearing agent is a middleman who files customs paperwork and pays duties for importers. Timothy Segane, a clearing agent, was arrested on 25 August 2026 after allegedly trying to bribe a customs officer.
He appeared before magistrate Paul Mujuni at the Anti-Corruption Division, the High Court’s specialist unit for graft cases, which denied him bail and sent him to Luzira, Uganda’s main prison, in Kampala. At a hearing reported on 29 August 2026 he faced four charges: false customs declarations, tax evasion, corruption and conspiracy to break customs laws, under the Anti-Corruption Act and the customs law of the East African Community, the regional trade bloc.
Ugandan media reports of 13 November 2026 describe the case against Kisitu as growing out of the Segane arrest. We could not confirm Segane’s current case status.
What Is Alleged, and What Is Not Proven
Ugandan media reports of 13 November 2026, describing the internal disciplinary charges, say Kisitu allegedly received Shs300 million in Ugandan shillings (about US$74,000) from Segane in 2025 and a further Shs5 million (about US$1,200) in 2026, sent through a mobile-money agent, a shop that moves cash by phone. The conversion uses about 4,050 shillings to the US dollar, a mid-November 2026 market rate; the claims are untested.
The charges also allege that Kisitu hid a company’s tax-liability information and told officials to clear a Rolls-Royce without following customs, valuation and tax procedures. We could not confirm those claims from a document, so they are reported, not confirmed.
Kisitu’s Side of the Story
In a letter dated 8 September 2026 to Emmanuel Katongole, then chairman of the URA board, Kisitu alleged that witnesses faced pressure and that investigators withheld evidence. He also raised possible conflicts of interest and asked for an independent investigation.
The URA board has said it has the authority to investigate and discipline senior officials. Kisitu had not publicly answered the payment claims when we published.
Why It Matters for Traders and Investors
Customs duty is paid at the border, so an official who undervalues goods or waives tax cuts government revenue directly. The alleged payments total about US$75,000 at the rate noted above, a figure no court has tested.
Importers rely on clearing agents to file their paperwork, so a case at this level touches ordinary trade. For wider context, see our guide to who holds power in Uganda and our report on an audit of a state export agency.
What Is Not Known
URA has not said which specific rules Kisitu broke. No charge against Kisitu has been reported, and URA has not published its findings.
Related coverage: Uganda’s trade gap and the central bank’s key rate decision; more on our Uganda page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was fired at Uganda’s tax agency?
Customs Commissioner Asadu Kisitu Kigozi and integrity chief James Abola were dismissed on Friday, 13 November 2026. URA confirmed the dismissals.
Who is Timothy Segane?
He is a clearing agent arrested on 25 August 2026 after allegedly trying to bribe a customs officer. A court remanded him in custody on four charges.
Has Kisitu been charged?
We found no report of a criminal charge against him. The payment claims are allegations, and he has disputed the process in a letter of 8 September 2026.
What does a clearing agent do?
A clearing agent files customs paperwork and pays import duties on behalf of traders. Importers rely on them to get cargo released from ports and borders.
Sources: Uganda Revenue Authority confirmation of the dismissals (13 November 2026); Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court, charges against Timothy Segane (remand, August 2026); Asadu Kisitu Kigozi’s letter to the URA board chairman (8 September 2026); Ugandan media reports of the disciplinary charges (13 November 2026).
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