EXCLUSIVE: ‘Richest’ Ugandan Indian Couple Considers Divorce

By Chimp Investigations Unit

A Ugandan millionaire couple of Indian origin has started preparing for divorce, ChimpReports can exclusively reveal.

The millionaire, who has interests in real estate and lives in the posh suburb of Kololo, recently started dating a Nepalese woman.

The millionaire’s new girlfriend runs a shop at Kingdom Kampala and drives a new harrier brand car. She lives in Kololo.

Our investigative team has on several occasions seen the businessman being dropped at the Nepalese national’s residence.

This investigative website decided to keep the identities of the subjects of this story anonymous to protect its deeply entrenched sources.

It all started in early 2019 with the wife of the tycoon landing on his romantic WhatsApp messages with the Nepalese woman.

This triggered bad blood between the couple which has lived and prospered together for decades.

The couple is blessed with several children.

The tension in the home triggered by the tycoon’s alleged affair led to physical fights between the couple at their palatial home in Kololo.

“During the COVID-19 lockdown, the millionaire and his wife fought almost on a daily basis,” recalls a credible insider.

“The children and their partners tried to intervene but the situation did not improve at all.”

To avoid domestic violence, the tycoon’s wife decided to leave her matrimonial bed to stay with her daughter in the same compound.

There was hope that the couple would reunite after counselling but little has changed within the last one year.

Last blow

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During this past Christmas season, the millionaire’s wife decided to fly to London, United Kingdom, to “cool off” after months of stress.

This gave the millionaire enough room to have a good time with his Nepalese girlfriend.

The lovebirds decided to travel to the home of a prominent media entrepreneur in western Uganda.

Champagnes and expensive whiskies were served to entertain the visibly excited pair.

On returning from London in January, 2021, the tycoon’s enraged wife called lawyers to draft divorce papers.

“Enough is enough,” she said, after learning of the western Uganda trip.

“Get me the papers so I can sign them today,” she fumed.

Worried of seeing their wealthy family disintegrate, the children appealed to their mother to exercise restraint.

“See where we have come from. Building this empire from scratch. We just can’t let it go,” the tycoon’s chubby-cheeked son urged his mother.

Interestingly, the tycoon’s son had also recently traveled to London where he had gone to “cool off” after fighting with his wife in Kololo.

Nevertheless, ChimpReports has learned that attempts were made to deport the Nepalese woman only to meet resistance from the tycoon and his powerful friends.

Sources say the wealthy man accuses his wife of “extravagance” including “taking unnecessary flights to Europe and spending a lot of money on luxurious personal effects.”

However, the businessman’s wife says they have been “living in luxury for decades. The cost of flights and shoes is really nothing.”

She also accuses her husband of “spending time with women” while on trips in Dubai.

Property row

During divorce or separation, especially women and children are at disadvantage due to financial limitations.

It is understood the children of the troubled couple are concerned about the future of their business empire worth millions of dollars.

If the tycoon manages to divorce their mother to stay with his Nepalese girlfriend, the latter will be a huge beneficiary of their property which was built by “sweat” and “sacrifices” spanning decades.

Secondly, a divorce means sharing the properties, which are being managed under one roof, between the couple.

This property includes prime land, luxurious apartment blocks and hotels among others.

“This is a serious issue because some companies which were jointly managing these properties will collapse. People will lose jobs. It will take a toll on the Ugandan economy,” said one of the successful couple’s children.

Expensive divorce

Considering that the tycoon is among Uganda’s wealthiest men, some family members are already musing whether the divorce could become the most expensive of all time in the country.

According to a recent article authored by Katende, Ssempebwa and Advocates, property acquired before marriage is held solely by the spouse who acquired it.

In the case of the tycoon, according to their own published confessions, it was the wife who raised the initial capital for the family’s first businesses.

If this is proven in courts of law, the couple’s property will be categorized as “matrimonial”.

For example, a matrimonial home, where they live and stay, bring up children and quite often earn a living by working on the land on which the home is located, is shared equally between the couple (50%).

“The wife’s non-monetary contribution to the matrimonial property has been considered by the courts of law to include such activities like preparation of food, purchase of children’s clothing, getting children ready for school and generally enhancing the welfare of the family,” said Katende’s law firm.

“These activities amount to a substantial indirect contribution to the family income and assets which entitles her to an equal share in the couple’s matrimonial property.”

Property acquired during marriage solely by one of the spouses is held by the spouse who acquired it.

Property acquired during marriage by either spouses or where one of them made a contribution is shared according to each spouse’s contribution.

A cursory check of the companies managing the couple’s business show the wife of the troubled tycoon among the major shareholders.

In the case of Haji Musa Kigongo vs Olive Kigongo (High Court Civil Suit No. 295/2015), the Judge held that the woman (Olive) had acquired an interest in the house where she had lived for 26 years.

Although, there was no evidence of marriage, the Court took into consideration the fact that for a period of 26 years, the man had never objected to her stay in the house, making her believe that it was her home.

He was therefore estopped from denying that she had an interest in the said home. Further that the woman (Olive) had referred to herself as Mrs. Kigongo without objection from Mr. Kigongo.

Court said she had indirectly contributed to the house including giving birth to two children.

Facts on divorce

Data shows that in Uganda, seven percent of adult Ugandans encounter divorce or separation.

During the past four years, 7% of Ugandans have experienced this kind of ending of a relationship.

This translates to at least 370,000 divorces and separations a year. Divorce or separation always affects at least two people, but also children are often involved

Ending a family relationship has considerable impact on the lives of the people involved.

Most common consequences of divorce or separation are stress-related illnesses (71% of people who went through divorce or separation), loss of time (51%) and loss of income (48%).

ChimpReports understands the tycoon has called a few media practitioners for a meet-and-greet tomorrow (Wednesday) at one of his properties in Kololo.

It remains to be seen if he will move fast to break the news about his family troubles or try to control the narrative.