FROM COFFEE CLAIMS TO VICTORY: How Rogers Bulegeya’s Shs450 Million Saga Became a Test of NRM’s Grassroots Promise

What the report says

Watchdog Uganda reports that a months-long payment dispute involving coffee seedling suppliers in Masaka has been resolved after State House intervened. The article says Rogers Bulegeya, the National Resistance Movement chairperson for Masaka City and a figure associated with R and R Coffee Suppliers, received money alongside another supplier identified as Ms. Cissy, with the disbursement handled through Minister Balaam Barugahara.

According to the report, the suppliers said their outstanding claims totaled Shs600 million: about Shs450 million linked to R and R Coffee Suppliers and Shs150 million to Ms. Cissy. They said the seedlings had been supplied for distribution to communities as part of a wider effort combining coffee farming promotion, household economic empowerment and NRM grassroots mobilization during the 2026 political period. Watchdog Uganda says the suppliers waited nearly six months amid disputes over documentation, verification and responsibility for payment.

The report identifies the turning point as the escalation of the matter to State House, where the Office of the State House Comptroller, led by Jane Barekye, began verification of the claims. It adds that high-level engagements in Sembabule, including direct interaction between Barugahara and the suppliers, helped move the matter toward settlement. The article also notes that Hon. Justine Nameere had publicly distanced herself from responsibility for Ms. Cissy’s claim.

Beyond the payment itself, the case matters because it highlights the risks faced by local suppliers and mobilizers who use private resources in politically linked public initiatives. Watchdog Uganda frames the episode as a test of whether grassroots actors can obtain accountability when campaign-style development activities create financial obligations.