Veteran businessman Mathew Rukiikaire has entered the growing battle over the vast business empire left behind by late tycoon Musinguzi James Garuga accusing individuals linked to the family of attempting to unlawfully seize control of key companies tied to the deceased businessman.

Court and company records filed before the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) reveal that Rukiikaire has launched a legal challenge seeking the removal of what he describes as “illegal filings” made in Kinkizi Development Company Limited after Garuga’s death.

The move places Rukiikaire among a growing group of shareholders and family members pushing back against what they claim is a coordinated attempt by Agaba Maguru and widow Peace Kesiime to take over companies associated with the late tycoon’s multi-billion-shilling business network.

At the centre of the dispute is Kinkizi Development Company Limited, one of the most valuable companies linked to the Garuga business empire.

According to documents filed by Rukiikaire, the company holds major stakes in tea and community development ventures in western Uganda, including Kigezi Highland Tea Limited and Kamwenge Community Development Project Limited.

Rukiikaire, a shareholder in Garuga Properties Limited, argues that the late James Garuga remained the controlling force behind the companies until his death on August 6, 2025.

In his statutory declaration, Rukiikaire claims that after Garuga’s death, the companies were left without a properly constituted board making it impossible to lawfully transact business.

He accuses Agaba Maguru of exploiting the vacuum to illegally install himself as a director through what he calls sham resolutions and unlawful company filings.

According to the declaration, Maguru allegedly lodged a special resolution and company forms appointing himself director of Kinkizi Development Company Limited despite lacking approval from the majority shareholder, Garuga Properties Limited.

Rukiikaire says shareholders were never notified of any meetings, no proper board resolutions were passed and no lawful quorum existed to authorise the changes.

“The continued existence of the impugned filings exposes the company to unauthorized transactions and creates a real risk of dissipation of company assets,” the declaration states.

The filings now intensify scrutiny on Agaba Maguru who has increasingly faced accusations from sections of the Garuga family and shareholders over the management of businesses linked to the late tycoon.

Sources familiar with the internal wrangles claim that several company operations have since stalled amid fears of internal takeover battles, contested directorships and attempts to control lucrative assets without proper shareholder approval.

The latest legal action also adds pressure on Peace Kesiime, Garuga’s widow who is already facing separate accusations in court relating to decisions made during the businessman’s final illness and treatment before his death.

For many close observers of the Garuga empire, Rukiikaire’s intervention signals that influential shareholders are no longer willing to remain silent as disputes surrounding the late tycoon’s wealth escalate.

Business analysts say the fight is no longer just about family disagreements but about the future control of a business network built over decades through real estate, agriculture and community investment projects across western Uganda.

With multiple legal battles now unfolding simultaneously, the struggle for control of the Garuga empire appears far from over.

The battle has now attracted the attention of the Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB).

In a summons issued under the Companies (Powers of the Registrar) Regulations, the Registrar of Companies directed Agaba Maguru and Garuga Properties Limited to appear before the Registrar on June 23, 2026, over the disputed company filings challenged by Mathew Rukiikaire.

The summons followed an application filed on May 19, 2026, seeking rectification of company records and questioning the legality of Maguru’s appointment and actions within the Garuga-linked companies.

URSB further instructed the respondents to file their statutory declarations in reply before the hearing, setting the stage for what is expected to be a major corporate showdown over control of the late Musinguzi James Garuga empire.