The High Court in Kampala has issued an interim injunction halting the appointment of a substantive Chief Executive Officer of the Insurance Regulatory Authority of Uganda (IRA) pending the determination of a case filed by the Authority’s outgoing CEO, Ibrahim Kaddunabbi Lubega.
In a ruling delivered on Monday evening, the Head of the Civil Division, Lady Justice Joyce Kavuma, held that although Kaddunabbi’s five-year contract expired on May 31, 2026, the statutory process of appointing a substantive Chief Executive Officer remains incomplete and should not proceed until the court determines the main application.
The dispute stems from the IRA Board’s decision of February 16, 2026, declining to recommend Kaddunabbi for reappointment to a second five-year term, despite his claim that he was eligible for renewal under the Insurance Act and the Authority’s Human Resource Management Manual.
Kaddunabbi argues that the Board violated his right to a fair hearing by deciding against recommending his reappointment to the Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, who is vested with the statutory mandate to appoint the Chief Executive Officer. In his application, Kaddunabbi sought interim orders restraining the Authority and its Board from implementing the February decision and from forcing him onto leave pending the determination of his application for a temporary injunction.
The Insurance Regulatory Authority opposed the application through its Director of Legal Affairs and Secretary, arguing that the matter had been overtaken by events because Kaddunabbi’s contract had naturally expired on May 31, 2026.
The Authority further submitted that the Permanent Secretary and Secretary to the Treasury had appointed Dr Protazio Sande as Acting Chief Executive Officer with effect from June 1, 2026, leaving no employment contract for the court to preserve.
Former IRA Board Chairperson Dr Isaac Nabeta also opposed the application, maintaining that the Board acted lawfully and in good faith while exercising its statutory mandate. During the hearing, Kaddunabbi’s lawyers accused the respondents of acting in contempt of an administrative order issued by the court on May 29, 2026, by facilitating the appointment of an Acting Chief Executive Officer despite the subsisting court order.
Justice Kavuma declined to entertain the contempt allegations, ruling that the alleged acts constituted indirect contempt because they occurred outside the presence of the court. She held that such allegations must be pursued through separate proceedings in which the accused parties are allowed to defend themselves.
“The allegations of contempt are not properly before this court,” Justice Kavuma ruled. The judge also dismissed the respondents’ preliminary objection that the application had been overtaken by events. She observed that although Kaddunabbi’s employment contract had expired, the statutory process of appointing a substantive Chief Executive Officer had not been concluded because the Minister of Finance had not yet exercised the powers conferred under Section 20 of the Insurance Act.
“The events that happened on June 1, 2026, are the first steps in a continuous process which has not ended. Therefore, it cannot be correct to state that this application has been overtaken by events,” the judge ruled. Justice Kavuma acknowledged that the appointment of an Acting Chief Executive Officer had already altered the factual status quo and could not be reversed through an interim injunction, noting that courts generally do not grant injunctions that undo actions already taken before the final determination of a dispute.
However, she found that there remained a real and imminent risk that the process of appointing a substantive Chief Executive Officer could be completed before the judicial review application is heard and determined, thereby rendering the main case nugatory. The judge held that preserving Kaddunabbi’s right to a fair administrative process outweighed any inconvenience that would result from temporarily suspending the recruitment process.
“The rights of the applicant to a just and fair process need to be protected until this court determines the substantive application such that the main application is not rendered nugatory,” Justice Kavuma ruled.
The court consequently issued an interim injunction restraining the Insurance Regulatory Authority from proceeding with the appointment of a substantive Chief Executive Officer until the judicial review application challenging the Board’s decision is determined. Justice Kavuma further directed that the main judicial review application will be heard on June 30, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. The ruling means that while Dr Protazio Sande will continue serving as Acting Chief Executive Officer, the Authority cannot appoint a substantive CEO until the High Court determines whether the Board lawfully declined to recommend Kaddunabbi for a second term-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
