KAMPALA – The Chief Executive Officer of Uganda National Oil Company (UNOC), Dr Josephine Kasalamwa Wapakhabulo, has in unprecedented circumstances resigned from her position, three years after her appointment.
Dr Wapakhabulo, daughter of the late Speaker of Parliament, James Wapakhabulo, announced her resignation in a letter to the UNOC board chairman, Mr Emmanuel Katongole, on Monday.
“This is to submit my resignation from the position of Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda National Oil Company with effect from 13 August 2019. Chairman, it has been an honour and privilege to work with you, the Board and staff of UNOC as we set up and established UNOC to handle the State’s commercial Interests in the oil and Gas sector. However, the tone has come for me to focus on my family and new opportunities,” her letter reads in part.
In the letter, Dr Wapakhabulo thanked UNOC board, staff, President Museveni and ministers Irene Muloni and Matia Kasaija for supporting her during her tenure.
“I am most proud of the most hardworking, smart and skilled Ugandans we have employed at UNOC. The UNOC staff are dedicated to serving this country. And I am confident that that under the continued guidance of you and the Board, UNOC will go from strength to strength and successfully deliver its mandate to the people of Uganda,” he wrote.
“I express my sincere gratitude to His Excellency President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, his leadership and stewardship of our oil & Gas sector. I also thank our Shareholder ministers; Eng Irene Muloni, and Mr Matia Kasaija for all the support and guidance you have given me during my time as CEO and for this opportunity to serve the country,” she added.
It was not immediately clear why Dr Wapakhabulo left one of the most coveted positions in a government agency.
In 2016, Dr Wapakhabulo was appointed as the first ever chief executive officer of the oil body after beating three other contenders.
These included Mr Dozith Abeinomugisha, assistant commissioner in the petroleum directorate, Mr Abdul Byakagaba, formerly with government’s Petroleum Exploration and Production Department (PEPD) and currently employed by Tullow Oil, an assistant commissioner for Pipelines Development in the Petroleum Directorate, Mr John Bosco Habomugisha.
She holds a Global Executive MBA from INSEAD Business School in France, a PhD in Information Science, a Master’s in Information Technology and a Bachelor’s Degree in Electronic and Electrical Engineering from Loughborough University in the UK.
She is also a registered Chartered Engineer in the Institute of Engineering and Technology in the UK.