A bitter succession and property feud has erupted among family and clan members of former Jinja City Council Principal Revenue Officer Alex Kiwanuka, who died on April 5, 2026, just minutes to 5pm, as he was being rushed to Nile International Hospital.
Kiwanuka, 50, died intestate, without leaving behind a will, now setting the stage for a court battle over a vast estate. Many who knew him believed he had “a big future to serve humanity and bring up a very successful family.”
Ordinarily, Kiwanuka lacked nothing. He could afford meals of his choice at any high-end hotel. But death, “being something beyond human powers and understanding,” cut short his life before he could celebrate Easter 2026.
Approved Asset Inventory Reveals Vast Holdings.According to a document marked _Approved Asset Inventory of the Estate of Alex Kiwanuka as at 5th April 2026_, the deceased’s holdings include:
Jinja City: Land approximately 0.2280 hectares with residential permanent housing and structures situated on Plot 7, Chandual Patel Road, Masese.
Njeru Municipality: Land with residential structures in Bukaya East; a second parcel of land with 3 residential structures also in Bukaya East
Wakiso District: Land approximately 100ft by 100ft, Block 413, in Bwerenge Cell, Kisubi Ward, Katabi Town Council, Mukono: Land near Mpoma Satellite Station
Jinja: Business lockups in Rubaga.
Other Land: Parcels in Kaitabawala and Budondo on the shores of Lake Victoria
Bugiri: 50 acres of sugar cane plantation.
Vehicles: Brand new vehicle UA 285CQ and an old Toyota RAV4 UAT 488L
Liquid Assets: Unspecified amount of mobile money on MoMo accounts, and bank accounts with “millions of money” at Equity and Tropical banks, Jinja Branch
The inventory further lists a hotel among the assets, confirming Kiwanuka’s substantial footprint in business and real estate.
Widow Alleges Phone Grab on Death Day.
The legally wedded widow, Madam Diana Kiwanuka Amara, now claims that phones with numbers 0703580518 and 0772430001 were “grabbed on the very day the husband died” by a one Muwanika Zainab Kasule and have never been handed over to her.
The alleged seizure of the phones has become a flashpoint in the dispute, with the widow’s camp arguing that access to the devices is critical to securing mobile money, bank notifications, and other digital records tied to the estate.
Court Battle and Calls for Mediation.
The matter is now before court. The widow and Kiwanuka’s eldest son, Elisha Owen Kiwanuka, are jointly represented by Juma Munulo of M/s Munulo & Co. Advocates.
While colleagues at Jinja Town Hall mourned, an all-too-common but unexpected occurrence emerged: a deep family rift before Kiwanuka’s body was fully decomposed.
With tensions escalating, voices within Jinja and the legal fraternity are urging the parties to abandon courtroom battles in favor of mediation.
“These are children already stressed by sudden loss. Dragging this through court will only destroy Alex Kiwanuka’s legacy and deplete the very estate they are fighting over,” said a senior clan elder who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.
Legal experts note that because Kiwanuka died without a will, the Succession Act and customary law will guide distribution. But without consensus, litigation often consumes estates in legal fees and fractures families irreparably.
“An amiable position reached through mediation protects the children, preserves the estate, and honors the deceased,” said a Jinja-based advocate not involved in the case. “Court should be the last resort, not the first weapon.”
A Legacy at Stake.
Alex Kiwanuka was a familiar face at Jinja Town Hall, where colleagues described him as ambitious and diligent. His sudden death shocked the city council fraternity and the wider business community where he had investments.
At both St. Andrew’s Church in Jinja City, where he wedded years earlier, and at his ancestral home during burial, Anglican clerics including Busoga Diocese Bishop Rt. Rev. Prof. Dr. Grace Lubaale eulogized him solemnly. The tributes were warm. No one anticipated that a vicious fight over his estate would follow so soon.
For now, the hotel stands, the vehicles are parked, and the land remains. But the question tearing the family apart is not what he left behind, it ia who controls it, and at what cost to his name.
TEU could not independently verify the phone-grabbing allegation by press time. Efforts to reach Muwanika Zainab Kasule for comment were unsuccessful.
This is a developing story. The case continues.
TEU Editorial: In Kiwanuka’s Name, Choose To Be Good, Not Just Right.
The sermons at St. Andrew’s Church and Magamaga Town Council were solemn. Clerics including Bishop Grace Lubaale of Busoga Diocese preached dignity. Mourners at the ancestral home wept, prayed, and chorused: May His Soul Rest In Peace.
Yet before the red soil settled on Alex Kiwanuka’s grave, the war began. Phones grabbed, vehicles hidden and stage-managed clan meetings held. Lawyers briefed. Kin in court. A hotel, land, sugarcane, millions, all now hostage to greed dressed as justice.
This is not who we are. This cannot be his Legacy.
Ugandans fear wills, as if ink on paper summons death. But death needs no invitation. It came for Kiwanuka at 50, minutes to 5pm, on the road to Nile International Hospital. He left behind everything except instructions. And now, the “caring” kin have emerged, not to mourn, but to claim.
To Madam Diana Kiwanuka Amara, to Elisha Owen Kiwanuka, to Muwanika Zainab Kasule and others, to every brother, uncle, auntie, and clan elder now circling the estate: Pause.
The law will tell you who can inherit and who to get what percentage. But culture, faith, and obuntu bulamo must tell you who should lead. The question is not “What am I entitled to?” but “What would honor him?”
Scripture itself points us away from the courts and toward peace. “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone”. Romans 12:18ff. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God”. Matthew 5:9f. The Qur’an commands, “And reconciliation is better”. Qur’an 4:128. Mediation is not weakness. It is wisdom. It is faith in action.
And what does true faith demand of us now? “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress” James 1:27. “You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child” Exodus 22:22ff.
The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said: “The one who looks after a widow or a poor person is like a warrior who fights for Allah’s cause”. Sahih al-Bukhari.
Choose fairness over technicalities. Choose family over filings. Choose to be good, not merely right.
Because you can win in court and still lose in culture. You can secure a title deed and forfeit your name. You can drain the bank accounts and bankrupt the children’s future. Is that the victory you want?
The Bible teaches us about ekisa kya mukama Yesu Kristo(the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ(. Anglicanism teaches us reconciliation. Islam teaches adl justice with mercy. Our traditions teach us that a man’s wealth is not measured at death by his acres, but by the peace he leaves behind.
Kiwanuka worked for Jinja City and Busoga. He built a hotel. He planted cane in Bugiri. He fed his family and educated his children with diligence and prudence. Will his last act be to feed lawyers and tear his bloodline apart?
We urge mediation. Sit under the same tree where you buried him. Put the phone numbers, the logbooks, the land titles on the table. Let clan elders, religious leaders, and Juma Munulo of M/s Munulo & Co. Advocates and other attorneys, guide not inflame. Let Bishop Lubaale pray over the settlement, not just the casket.
To die intestate was Kiwanuka’s unforeseen matter. To remain intransigent would be yours.
History will not remember who got Plot 7 on Chandual Patel Road. It will remember who turned a funeral into a feud. It will remember whether Kiwanuka’s children grew up as orphans twice once by death, again by greed.
The crowd /mourner said May His Soul Rest In Peace. Make it true.
Let the first act of the Kiwanuka estate be an act of peace.
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