Hunters Become The Hunted: Accountability Activists Struggle To Respond To Allegations
The tables have turned on renowned social media accountability activists Agather Atuhaire, Godwin Toko, and Dr. Jimmy Spire Ssentongo, who have long been vocal advocates for accountability.
Working under their Agora Centre Research Ltd, now, activists find themselves at the receiving end of criticism and scrutiny, accused of “financial impropriety and hypocrisy.”
Despite their tough stance on pushing others to account for their actions especially concerning funds involving taxpayers, the trio is struggling to respond to allegations of failing to account for funds worth $200,000.
The same force they exerted on those they held accountable is now returned to them, with critics especially in the diaspora, demanding transparency and accountability.
The funds were reportedly obtained to facilitate the #March2Parliamentprotests, which were foiled by security agencies in July 2024.
Although the accusations were started by one of the persons who was at the forefront of organizing the failed protests, but later felt side-lined in the process, they gained traction after US-based prominent persons based in the area of holding Ugandans accountable picked interest in the matter.
Specifically, Remmy Bahati, a journalist who formerly worked with Next Media’s NBS TV who relocated to the US, and human rights, especially LGBTQ+ activist Hilary Taylor who goes by handle “Justice Hunter” on X, have been vocal in their criticism of the trio for weeks now and they seem not about to stop.
Angered by what they termed as defensive responses to queries, Bahati on August 18th, posted on her X account, “I don’t like the hypocrisy of those who claim to hold others accountable but get defensive when questioned. It is ironic. They position themselves as champions of justice, yet when tables turn, they act like being scrutinized is an attack.”
“This kind of extremism, where you silence critics instead of addressing concerns, erodes trust,” she added, “if you are genuinely committed to accountability; take it all the way, even when it’s uncomfortable. Don’t just preach transparency, live it. Anything less is just hypocrisy, and we are not here for that.”
https://x.com/BahatiRemmy/status/1824949227551588859?t=GZn9oP_HlCVQWNYgLT6aig&s=03
She was referring to an odious decision by one of the persons under fire, Dr. Spire Ssentongo who angrily blocked Hilary on X for asking annoying accountability questions to him and the Agora team.
It also irked city controversial lawyer Isaac Ssemkadde who nicknamed himself “Rebel Lawyer” to call out the trio, accusing them of deviating from the intended goals of the USAID-CIPESA project.
In a Tuesday statement, the Executive Director of Legal Brains Trust, which is a democracy and human rights watchdog, Ssemakedde petitioned the USAID in Uganda, the US Embassy in Kampala, and Relevant Authorities to take action against the trio on accusations that they had deviated from the project’s intended goals which he said, was to support democratic discourse in Uganda.
“This behaviour is unacceptable, especially because it involves American tax dollars and could undermine democratic values promoted by USAID,” Ssemakadde wrote.
He added, “we urge Agora to correct their course, adhere to the original grant objectives, and respect democratic engagement, privacy, and non-discrimination principles.”
Agora Chiefs’ powerful weapon has often been the cyber killing of their critics on matters of accountability, and the dissenting views to their said impropriety.
https://x.com/IsaacSsemakadde/status/1825819454934049069
Bahati Strikes Again
After days of heated exchanges between Agora activists and social media users, Bahati swang into action again, this time around issuing a warning regarding her capacity as a taxpayer in America to report Toko, one of the core persons at Agora, directly to Dr. Monde Muyangwa, the USAID Assistant Administrator for Africa to “scrutinize your questionable activism and ensure our funds are supporting democracy, not hooliganism.”
She asserted, “I’m fully capable of taking that step, and I will if necessary. If we’re funding you/ NGOs, they must uphold the highest standards,” she said.
https://x.com/BahatiRemmy/status/1825855030970216825
In Response via X, Toko made a light joke out of Bahati’s threat and left it at that.
However, from a bully Dr. Ssentongo, Bahati experienced online harassment, including a body-shaming cartoon drawn by Spire, a renowned cartoonist who initially earned a livelihood from using a pencil in drawing artwork.
https://x.com/SpireJim/status/1825943452036837676
Critics have accused the trio of refusing to respond to accountability queries to the extent that Justice Hunter nicknamed Professor Ssentongo ‘Pro-pesa’.
He posted on X, “It’s appalling to see pro-pesa Spire, Godwin Toko, and Agather, letting their fragile egos, to escalate this crisis,” he said, “they are gradually grooming themselves into baby dictators like despot Museveni they claim to be challenging! Agora is not above scrutiny folks!”
He questioned, “If they held others accountable in 2023, why do they find it hard to answer basic questions?”
https://x.com/hillarytaylorvi/status/1825824365671305320
https://x.com/hillarytaylorvi/status/1826476528789508207
https://x.com/hillarytaylorvi/status/1826229547056214272
Professor Ssentongo termed the whole matter a “character assassination” spree amid refuting claims that Agora has never received any funds to undertake its activities.
“…then the online tabloid extending it to character assassinating me. There is nothing they are directly asking for, apart from echoing accountability.” Stone-faced Spire was quoted by an online publication as saying.
As if they are on a collision path regarding the donor funding for activities, Agather Atuhaire, the head of Agora, confessed to the publication that they are being funded to do their largely trolling online work.
“They [the funders] have supported our activities since November last year [2023]. Needless to say even before that Agora and individuals like Spire, Godwin, and myself were already doing activism,” she said.
Other Benefits
Atuhaire has won two major justice-related awards in the past two years – including this year’s US State Department’s Woman of Courage Award, which she fetched straight from the US hardly a week into the #ParliamentExhibition.
Professor Ssentongo on the other hand, scooped the European Union (EU) Human Rights Defender of the Year award.
In the past, the trio has used their activism to fundraise from the public to support their causes. However, their accountability reports have not been free from accusations of inaccuracy.
Atuhaire declared that she had a balance of Shs30m and $200, but some people poked holes into the accountability report, urging that her first declaration of less than Shs30m could not be enough to make such a balance.
From being advocates to being accused of the same accusations they are preaching against, the accountability activists’ moral authority and integrity stand blemished.