KAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda Human Rights Commission Chairperson Mariam Wangadya appeared before Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (COSASE) on Tuesday, a day after the committee ordered that she be arrested and produced before it for failing to honour its summons.
Wangadya appeared before the committee on the morning of 11 August accompanied by other UHRC officials and commissioners, bringing an immediate change to a standoff that had escalated after she missed successive COSASE hearings.
Opening her submission, Wangadya apologised for failing to attend the previous hearing and asked the committee to withdraw the arrest order against her.
“I beg this committee to revoke the arrest warrant that was issued against me,” Wangadya told MPs.
She also indicated that the UHRC leadership was ready to respond to queries arising from the Auditor General’s report and cooperate with the parliamentary inquiry.
Following her appearance and apology, COSASE proceeded with the hearing and suspended further enforcement of the arrest order.
Arrest order followed repeated no-shows
The confrontation escalated on Monday after COSASE Chairperson Muwada Nkunyingi directed Parliament Police to locate Wangadya and produce her before the committee at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday.
The directive followed what the committee said were two consecutive failures by Wangadya to appear before COSASE without an explanation MPs considered satisfactory.
On the latest occasion, UHRC officials appeared without their chairperson. The delegation was led by Acting Secretary and Accounting Officer Kamadi Byonabye, who presented correspondence explaining Wangadya’s absence.
Wangadya had indicated that she intended to present the national human rights status report before Parliament’s Human Rights Committee rather than appear before COSASE.
Nkunyingi rejected that position, arguing that a public official summoned to answer accountability questions arising from an Auditor General’s report could not determine which parliamentary committee to appear before.
On Tuesday, Wangadya formally withdrew the earlier position and acknowledged COSASE’s role in scrutinising matters relating to public expenditure and audit accountability at the commission.
No confirmation Wangadya was physically arrested
Although COSASE had directed police to arrest and produce Wangadya before the committee, there was no immediate independent confirmation that she had actually been taken into police custody before appearing at Parliament.
Her appearance should therefore not be reported as confirmation that she was arrested. What is confirmed is that an arrest order had been issued, she subsequently appeared before COSASE, apologised and asked that the order be withdrawn.
The committee then suspended further enforcement and continued with its inquiry.
UHRC faces wider accountability scrutiny
COSASE is examining matters arising from the Auditor General’s report concerning financial management and accountability at the Uganda Human Rights Commission.
However, parliamentary scrutiny of UHRC has expanded beyond financial queries to wider questions about governance, leadership, case management and the ability of the constitutional body to carry out some of its statutory responsibilities.
During earlier parliamentary proceedings in July, UHRC officials told COSASE that the commission had not held a formal commission meeting since March 2026, despite such meetings being central to institutional decision-making.
Parliament was also told that tribunal sittings had been affected. Officials said tribunal sessions had last been held in December 2025 after the available budget for hearings was exhausted.
The disclosures raised questions among MPs about the commission’s ability to effectively discharge its mandate of protecting and promoting human rights, investigating alleged violations and hearing complaints.
Wangadya has previously defended her leadership
Wangadya has previously appeared before parliamentary committees and rejected a number of allegations levelled against her leadership of the commission.
During a July appearance before Parliament’s Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, MPs questioned her over the handling of human rights complaints and allegations that some decisions had been made without adequate involvement of other commissioners.
Wangadya defended her handling of cases and rejected suggestions that she had improperly closed complaints, while lawmakers maintained that allegations of human rights violations must be subjected to proper procedures regardless of the background of a complainant.
Resignation did not take effect
The controversy has also been complicated by Wangadya’s earlier notice expressing an intention to resign as UHRC chairperson.
She submitted the notice to President Yoweri Museveni on 6 July, but Attorney General Sam Mayanja later told Parliament that the communication did not constitute a completed resignation.
Mayanja said a resignation would only take effect after a formal resignation letter had been submitted and accepted by the appointing authority. He therefore maintained that Wangadya remained the substantive chairperson of the Uganda Human Rights Commission.
That position has kept her responsible for responding to parliamentary scrutiny concerning the commission while she remains in office.
Attention now shifts to the COSASE hearing
Wangadya’s appearance has temporarily defused the confrontation over the parliamentary summons, but the substantive accountability questions facing the Uganda Human Rights Commission remain before COSASE.
The committee is expected to continue examining the Auditor General’s findings as well as concerns surrounding the commission’s governance and use of public resources.
For Parliament, the matter has also become a test of the authority of parliamentary committees to compel officials heading public institutions to appear and account for their stewardship.
For UHRC, the hearing comes at a sensitive time when the institution’s own leadership, internal governance and ability to fulfil its constitutional human rights mandate are under heightened public and parliamentary scrutiny.
