An investigation by Informanté revealed that private secretaries in some ministries have been put under pressure to resign or take up lower posts, as some Permanent Secretaries (PSs) have upon arrival at their new ministries informed their subordinate directors that their offices “must be cleared.”

Some Permanent Secretaries who were recently ‘re-deployed’ to other ministries are said to be considering the transfer of their own private secretaries, who worked with them at previous ministries.
A letter from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), dated 30 May 2012, signed by under-secretary, Morimunu Kavitjene and sent to the Secretary to Cabinet - a copy which is possession of Informanté - directed that if any private secretary, personal assistant or private driver is to be transferred, the officers involved are requested to inform the Public Service Commission Secretariat whether the Permanent Secretaries are to be transferred with their administrative assistants and/or private secretaries.

“Understandably some Permanent Secretaries may want to take along their Administrative and Private Secretaries. However, those staff members can only be transferred if such posts are vacant,” at the offices where they are being transferred to, the letter stipulates.
Permanent Secretaries who wish to take their confidants with them should forward their motivation to the PSC Secretary for such transfers. “If [the posts are] not vacant, are the substantive incumbents willing to be accommodated in equivalently graded posts and do they have the qualifications and experience necessary for those posts,” the letter asks.
A well-placed source within government claims that PSs who are hoping to have their administrative assistants transferred, include Andrew Ndishishi. Ndishishi is now PS of the Ministry of Health and Social Services and he could soon have his private secretary transferred, the source claims.
Kahijoro Kahuure reportedly also wants his private secretary transferred from Health to the Ministry of Mines and Energy. Private secretary, Maija Hamupembe, who was left behind by Joseph Iita at the Ministry of Mines, now risks being demoted to a private secretary for one of the directors.
It is as yet unclear whether the PSs will adhere to the directive from the OPM or seek to bypass the procedures where no vacancy exists in order to accommodate their private secretaries.