A whistle-blower’s petition has forced the suspension of the swearing-in of two members to the 9th board of the National Drug Authority (NDA), in the face of pending investigations.

In a letter dated March 2nd, 2026 by the Deputy Inspector General of Government Anne Twinomugisha Muhairwe directed the NDA secretary to stop any further action regarding the appointments/ swearing in of Dr Medard Bitekyerezo and Dr Muhammad Mbabali.

“This is to direct you to halt any further action regarding the appointment of Bitekyerezo and Mbabali to the 9th NDA board, pending conclusion of the investigations or further orders from this office,” Muhairwe said.

The dramatic intervention followed a formal complaint by a whistle-blower who alleged that several appointments to the NDA board were made irregularly and in breach of established procedures.

According to the petition, Dr Bitekyerezo and Dr Mbabali were appointed on November 7, 2025, as board chairperson and representative of the Uganda Dental Association respectively, ahead of the expiry of their contracts on February 20, 2026.

The whistle-blower claims the process bypassed mandatory requirements, including nomination by relevant professional bodies, security vetting through Interpol, issuance of a certificate of financial implication by the Ministry of Finance, and approval by Cabinet.

The complaint also raises concerns about tenure. Both officials have reportedly served on the NDA board since 2017, completing nine years, and were set to begin another three-year term ending in 2029.

“The Act is silent on the number of terms a member may serve,” the petition states.

Beyond procedural questions, the whistleblower further flagged potential conflicts of interest, noting that Dr Bitekyerezo also serves on the board of National Medical Stores (NMS), while NMS General Manager Dr Moses Kamabare sits on the NDA board despite the NDA’s supervisory role over NMS in product quality assurance.

The petition further cites Section 5 of the NDA Act, which establishes an NDA Commission composed of a chairperson and four members selected from the authority, arguing that the current board’s size and composition may undermine its effectiveness.

The complainant urged urgent intervention to prevent what was described as the “regularisation of irregular appointments.”

The IGG’s investigation is now expected to determine whether the contested appointments complied with the law and whether broader reforms are needed in the governance of the country’s medicines regulator.

The halt of the swearing-in by the IGG has resulted to divisions among some board members, with several reportedly skipping the scheduled ceremony over fears of being arrested for contempt of the IGG.