SHOCKING DETAILS: Uganda Security Agencies Probe German Diplomat, NGOs for Alleged Covert Political Funding

KAMPALA — Ugandan security agencies have opened investigations into a German diplomat, Tassilo von Droste, and a network of local and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) over allegations of illicit foreign funding and political interference ahead of the January 2026 general elections, The New Vision has reported.

The inquiries, according to the publication, centre on suspicions that Droste, operating under civil society cooperation frameworks, may have facilitated covert financing channels to opposition-aligned formations with the intent of fomenting unrest. Several foreign-linked funding streams have reportedly been suspended pending verification.

Director of Defence Public Information, Maj. Gen. Felix Kulayigye, confirmed that investigations were ongoing but declined to give further details.

“The matter is still under investigations. We will address you at the appropriate time on how far we have gone,” he stated.

A High-Level ‘Destabilisation’ Operation

Security sources cited by the publication, claim that intelligence services uncovered and contained what was described as a “high-level destabilisation operation” allegedly coordinated by Droste, who entered Uganda in 2023 and embedded himself within civic and governance circles.

Under the guise of leading the Civil Society in Uganda Support Programme (CUSP), he is accused of creating a “shadow financing network” to channel resources towards anti-state actors and radical political mobilisation.

The sources alleged that the funding was not intended for routine civil engagement but designed to “incubate regime-change infrastructure, coordinate extremist messaging, and engineer pre-election disruption.”

Security operatives reportedly profiled several NGOs and individuals said to have benefited from this network. The entities are alleged to be operating under the banner of human rights and governance, though counter-intelligence surveillance suggests foreign-backed digital propaganda and protest coordination.

Efforts to contact Droste for comment were unsuccessful.

Operation Contained, Networks Restricted

According to insiders, Uganda’s elite intelligence and counter-intelligence units acted swiftly to neutralise the operation, cutting off the alleged funding corridors and restricting Droste’s ability to activate destabilisation networks.

The containment, kept deliberately low-profile, has been credited with contributing to Uganda’s currently stable pre-election climate, despite heightened regional geopolitical activity.

Security agencies reportedly remain on heightened alert, monitoring renewed attempts by civil society actors to influence electoral dynamics through external funding and coordination.

Linkages to Past Governance Programmes

Classified intelligence referenced by the publication links Droste to the Advancing Governance and Accountability (AGA) programme — described as a covert successor to the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF), which was permanently shut down in 2021 by President Yoweri Museveni after it was accused of irregularly influencing Uganda’s political landscape and supporting violent protests.

Security sources allege that AGA and CUSP form part of a “rebranded” DGF structure, redesigned with greater secrecy and coordinated in partnership with operatives from another European embassy. Their reported objective is to reconstruct external command infrastructure capable of shaping Uganda’s political direction outside constitutional processes.

German Embassy Clarification

Information from the German Embassy’s official website indicates that the Civil Society in Uganda Support Programme (CUSP) is “aimed at strengthening Ugandan civil-society organisations through capacity development, organisational support, and enhanced cooperation with government institutions.”

The Embassy notes that CUSP is co-funded by the European Union and the Federal Republic of Germany, and implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) under Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Implications

The probe underscores the government’s increased vigilance toward foreign influence operations as the 2026 elections approach. Uganda has maintained that while it values development cooperation, it will not tolerate external funding mechanisms that risk undermining national sovereignty or democratic stability.

As the investigations continue, both Ugandan authorities and foreign missions are likely to face heightened scrutiny over aid transparency, civil-society programming, and political neutrality in an increasingly sensitive electoral season.

The reports come in the wake of a warning by police to the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP) to avoid confrontations with security agencies during their campaign activities.

When asked whether the party had resorted to seeking political funding from abroad, NUP Secretary General Lewis Rubongoya dismissed the allegations, describing them as baseless rumours, according to New Vision.