The appearance of President Yoweri Museveni’s daughter, Bishop Patience Rwabwogo, at the Anti-Corruption Court in Kampala has sparked mixed reactions among Ugandans on social media.
Patience Rwabwogo and her husband, PACEID chairman Odrek Rwabwogo, attended court on Thursday, 17 September 2026, to follow proceedings in the case involving Matthew Bagonza, the head of the Secretariat at the Presidential Advisory Committee on Export and Industrial Development (PACEID).
Bagonza was charged with alleged abuse of office and money laundering and remanded to Luzira Prison. He did not take plea because the court ruled that it had no jurisdiction to handle the case. The court ordered that he remain in custody as the matter awaits further proceedings.
The presence of Patience and her husband attracted attention, with some social-media users describing it as an unusual sight involving a member of the President’s family.
“Who had ever seen the Museveni family in courts of law? It’s a miracle,” one user identified as @Commentsection wrote.
Another user, @Naturinda, asked: “Does President Museveni feel happy seeing all this?”
Others viewed the couple’s appearance as an act of solidarity with Bagonza.
“Patience in solidarity with her husband, that’s amazing,” wrote Robert Elvis.
@Leo praised the couple for attending the proceedings, saying: “Humility at its best. Thank you Odrek and Lord Bishop for standing up for the truth with humility and love.”
However, not all reactions were supportive.
@Softmovie questioned whether the developments could have wider political implications, writing: “Looks like another opposition party from the first house in the pipeline. Isn’t this diversion. It’s like they are creating a situation.”
Another user, Benard Mbasa, questioned why Bagonza had been remanded despite the presence of Patience at court, asking: “What??? Even the bishop is in the court but magistrate could not even blink but sent the guy to Luzira? We are on our own.”
Richard Anderson also questioned why Bagonza had not been released, writing: “Whoever that arrested him is powerful for sure. The guy couldn’t be released on a phone call?”
The case has attracted wider public interest because Bagonza is a senior PACEID official and a close associate of Odrek Rwabwogo, who chairs the committee.
Prosecution alleges that Bagonza transferred Shs171.7 million from a PACEID-linked account to his personal account between September 2023 and August 2026. He also faces an allegation that he was involved in the irregular incorporation of a private company with objectives similar to those of PACEID.
