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NTUNGAMO, UGANDA — Shock and grief have gripped Ntungamo District Local Government following the sudden death of its long-serving Communications Officer, Anthony Kushaba.
Kushaba, 36, who is also the younger brother of exiled Ugandan lawyer Aaron Kizza—a legal practitioner known for representing jailed opposition leader Dr. Kizza Besigye—was found dead on his bed inside his rented room in Ntungamo town on Friday.
His unexpected passing came just hours after he spent a lively Thursday evening with friends, colleagues, and family members, leaving fellow district employees, journalists, and local residents struggling to come to terms with the news. Besides his role in public service, Kushaba was a respected former journalist who served as the Mbarara Bureau Chief for the Uganda Radio Network (URN) before transitioning into local government communications eight years ago.
Police authorities and medical staff at Itojo Hospital have launched investigations into his death, while colleagues remember him as a courageous, outspoken defender of workers’ rights.
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How was Anthony Kushaba found dead in his Ntungamo room?
The alarm was raised on Friday morning when Kushaba, who was widely known for being among the earliest employees to arrive at the Ntungamo District headquarters, failed to show up for work.
According to district staff, Kushaba occasionally traveled to his family home in Kabale without prior notice. However, when midday approached without any communication and repeated phone calls to his mobile line went unanswered, his close workmates grew concerned and decided to physically check on him.
Kushaba rented a residential room located just a short distance from the district headquarters. When his colleague, District Engineer Prosper Butubuura, arrived at the compound alongside other staff members, they found his front door securely locked from the inside.
After receiving no response to repeated knocks, the team alerted the landlady, Juliet Kwata. Before breaking the door, Butubuura peered through a rear window and spotted the exact pair of shoes Kushaba had been wearing the previous evening.
Recognizing that his car was parked outside and all signs pointed to his presence inside the room, the landlady and colleagues notified the police. Officers subsequently broke the door open and discovered Kushaba lying lifeless on his bed.
Landlady Juliet Kwata noted that Kushaba’s routine often meant neighbors did not immediately suspect anything unusual if his door remained shut during early morning hours, as he sometimes rested longer or walked directly to the nearby district offices.
What happened during Anthony Kushaba’s last evening with friends?
Those who spent Thursday with Kushaba described him as being in exceptionally high spirits, showing no visible signs of physical illness, mental distress, or emotional burden.
Earlier on Thursday, Kushaba joined fellow district staff at Nyabihoko to attend the burial of his aunt. District Engineer Prosper Butubuura, who traveled with him to and from the funeral, recalled that they returned to Ntungamo town together, shared dinner, and parted ways at approximately 10:00 PM when Kushaba drove back to his residence.
Later that night, Kushaba met up with a group of close friends at a popular local pork joint in the Buhumuriro suburb of Ntungamo town. Friends who were present at the gathering recounted how Kushaba kept everyone entertained throughout the evening.
According to a friend who attended the gathering, Kushaba spent the night telling stories, joking, and playfully mocking a mock-wedding setup for one of his friends, assigning funny roles to everyone present. The friends noted that he left the venue feeling happy and relaxed, making the news of his death the following morning utterly incomprehensible.
What did the Itojo Hospital postmortem reveal about his cause of death?
Following the discovery of his body, police transported Kushaba’s remains to Itojo Hospital in Ntungamo District for a formal postmortem examination to establish the exact medical cause of death. According to preliminary findings shared by colleagues who received the medical report from pathologists at Itojo Hospital, doctors determined that Kushaba suffered a catastrophic internal vascular failure.
District Engineer Prosper Butubuura explained that medical examiners pointed to ruptured blood vessels in the upper region of his torso:
“Doctors told us that the vessels carrying blood to the heart had ruptured in the upper part of the body, preventing blood from reaching the brain, and he died,” Butubuura explained following the postmortem examination.
Medical experts note that severe vascular ruptures of this nature can occur suddenly due to underlying, undetected cardiovascular conditions, acute aneurysms, or sudden spikes in blood pressure, often leading to rapid loss of consciousness and death during sleep.
Was Anthony Kushaba’s death connected to his brother Aaron Kizza or political threats?
Because Kushaba is the younger brother of advocate Aaron Kizza—an exiled Ugandan attorney who previously served on the legal defense team of opposition figure Dr. Kizza Besigye—speculation briefly surfaced regarding whether his death involved foul play or political intimidation.
However, workmates, family representatives, and local authorities confirmed that there was no immediate evidence or indication linking his death to his brother’s legal career or political exile. Eng. Prosper Butubuura stated that Kushaba had never mentioned receiving death threats, suspicious security tracking, or personal intimidation prior to his passing.
While Kushaba was known within Ntungamo District Local Government as an assertive communicator who never shied away from challenging administrative oversights, his colleagues emphasized that his workplace interactions were focused on institutional transparency and staff welfare rather than partisan politics.
Who was Anthony Kushaba and what was his journalism career?
Anthony Kushaba built an extensive, 17-year career spanning mainstream broadcast journalism, investigative reporting, media management, and public sector communications across Western Uganda.
He launched his journalism career in 2009, quickly establishing himself as a reliable voice in regional broadcasting:
- Radio Broadcasting: He began as a radio presenter and news reporter at BFM Radio in Bushenyi District before joining Voice of Kigezi in Kabale, where he developed a massive radio audience across the Kigezi sub-region.
- Uganda Radio Network (URN): Kushaba was recruited by the Uganda Radio Network (URN), one of East Africa’s premier news agency syndicates. He served as the URN Mbarara Bureau Chief for three years, supervising news coverage across Ankole and Kigezi sub-regions.
- Local Government Communications: In 2018, Kushaba transitioned from mainstream media into public relations, accepting the role of Communications Officer for Ntungamo District Local Government, a position he held for eight years until his death.
Throughout his tenure as district communicator, Kushaba bridged the gap between local government administration, community members, and media houses, ensuring that district programs, council decisions, and public health updates were communicated clearly.
How are colleagues and Ntungamo district staff remembering Anthony Kushaba?
Across Ntungamo District headquarters, workmates remember Kushaba as a fearless, honest, and deeply empathetic advocate who routinely put his professional standing on the line to defend junior employees.
Florence Kisembo, an inventory officer at Ntungamo District Local Government, paid tribute to Kushaba’s courage in speaking truth to administrative authority during internal staff grievances.
“If we had grievances and failed to pass them through, we would tell Anthony and he would either say it during meetings or tell it to the concerned directly,” Kisembo recalled. “He fought for our rights and was straight and to the point—an open man.”
Fellow journalists across Western Uganda also remembered Kushaba as a mentor who guided young reporters entering the media industry, teaching them to uphold accuracy, courage, and professional ethics. Anthony Kushaba is survived by his wife and three children. Burial arrangements are being coordinated by family members and Ntungamo District Local Government officials at his ancestral home in Kabale District.
