By Sekaggya Seka Moses
A letter written by the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) to Kampala Associated Advocates (KAA) has ignited fresh political tensions in Mawogola North, where Sodo Aine Kaguta is contesting for Member of Parliament in the 2026 elections.
Sodo faces Jet Tumwebaze, a city lawyer standing as an independent candidate and member of KAA.
The letter, dated November 4, 2025, was in response to a request by KAA seeking access to certified copies of Sodo’s academic credentials, including PLE, UCE, and UACE pass slips and certificates.
However, UNEB declined to release the documents, stating that the certificates are issued through the candidate’s respective school and not retained by the examinations body.
“UNEB is unable to avail you certified copies… as these documents are issued to the school from which a particular candidate took the relevant examination,” wrote UNEB Executive Director Dan N. Odongo.
He explained that while UNEB retains examination results data, it does not hold or reissue the original certificates.
KAA’s interest in verifying Sodo’s academic qualifications has raised eyebrows.
One of the lawyers in the firm, Jet Tumwebaze, is himself running for the Mawogola North parliamentary seat.
Tumwebaze is widely seen as being backed by Sam Kuteesa, the former Mawogola North MP and influential political figure in the constituency.
Political observers believe the request for academic verification is not merely routine, but part of a broader strategy to challenge Sodo’s legitimacy ahead of the 2026 election.
The move also reopens old political tensions tied to an earlier arrangement between the Kaguta and Kuteesa factions.
In the 2021 elections, Sodo initially won the NRM primary but stepped down in favor of Kuteesa’s daughter, Shartsi Musherure, after internal negotiations supervised at the highest political level.
It was agreed that Shartsi would represent the NRM flag that cycle, and Sodo would be supported later.
Ahead of 2026, Sodo has returned to claim the seat, and Shartsi has stepped down in respect of the earlier agreement.
However, Tumwebaze’s sudden emergence and his legal move involving UNEB is being read as an attempt to reopen that battlefield under a new face.
Sources close to Sodo’s camp describe the UNEB query as “a political witch-hunt disguised as a legal request.”
They argue that if the aim was verification, UNEB provides official letters confirming one’s performance making the call for certificates unnecessary and suspicious.
For now, the UNEB letter has provided no ammunition for Tumwebaze’s camp, but it has signaled the start of a heated contest in Mawogola North, a constituency long shaped by family alliances, silent deals, and powerful political interests.
