Kampala, Uganda | By Michael Wandati | An investigative report by NBS Television has uncovered alarming fraudulent practices within Uganda’s driving school sector, revealing a troubling pattern of exploitation and deception.
Instead of providing proper driving education and facilitating the process of obtaining driving permits, several driving schools are reportedly delivering substandard services, defrauding students who rely on them. The investigation highlights widespread dissatisfaction, as hopeful drivers are left frustrated after investing money into institutions that fail to deliver on their promises.
One of the main entities implicated in the report is Wefunile Company Limited, which operated under the name Wefunile Driving School. The company falsely claimed to be officially licensed by the Ministry of Works and Transport to assist individuals in obtaining driving permits.
The investigation revealed major discrepancies between the services Wefunile promised and what was actually provided, raising questions about the company’s legitimacy and accountability.
This issue goes beyond individual cases of fraud, shedding light on broader concerns about Uganda’s driving school regulatory framework, particularly the role of the Ministry of Works and Transport. The ministry licensed Wefunile Company Limited to operate as Wefunile Driving School without thoroughly verifying its incorporation documents to confirm the true owners and directors.
This failure of oversight has contributed to the exploitation of Ugandans seeking driving permits, raising serious concerns about the integrity of the licensing process. As schools like Wefunile take advantage of the high demand for driving permits, the lack of stringent regulatory enforcement has allowed these institutions to operate unchecked.
This not only undermines public confidence in the driver education and licensing process but also poses a risk to road safety as poorly trained drivers are awarded permits through these fraudulent programs.
According to guidelines from the Uganda Driver Licensing System (UDLS), legitimate driving schools must meet several criteria, including having at least two instructional vehicles with dual controls, proper training materials, a valid trading license, qualified instructors, and proof of ownership or a lease for the training grounds.
Driving schools must also maintain administrative facilities, a certificate of incorporation, a health inspection report, an LC III recommendation letter, and documentation proving the school’s legal location, among other requirements.
Documents obtained by the Kampala Dispatch reveal confusion between Wefunile Driving School and Wefunile Company Limited. While NBS TV accused Wefunile Driving School of defrauding Ugandans, it was actually Wefunile Company Limited that assumed the identity of Wefunile Driving School.
A letter to NBS TV on August 19 clarified the situation: “Wefunile Driving School is not Wefunile Company Limited, which is accused of collecting funds from individuals and failing to deliver services. I would like to clarify that these two entities are separately owned. Wefunile Company Limited, owned by Hajji Musanje Asande Hussiene, Mr. Matthew Mugisha, and Mr. Mark Oking, has been found responsible, as per findings by the Ministry of Works and Transport, not Wefunile Driving School, owned by Tumusiime Lloyd Magara. I have since stopped them from using my name to operate their business.”
The Ministry of Works issued a license to Wefunile Company Limited, which then wrongfully used the name Wefunile Driving School to defraud citizens by falsely promising to expedite the process of obtaining driving permits. This deceptive use of Wefunile’s name highlights serious gaps in oversight and regulatory enforcement within the ministry, allowing fraudulent practices to thrive unchecked.
Many Ugandans were misled into believing that Wefunile Driving School was behind the fraudulent activities when, in fact, the real culprit was Wefunile Company Limited.
In response to the investigation, Wefunile Driving School filed a formal complaint to NBS TV, expressing concern that the report had caused significant damage to its reputation due to mistaken identity. The school requested a full retraction and apology, emphasizing that the fraudulent activities were linked to Wefunile Company Limited, not Wefunile Driving School.
NBS TV did not respond to these concerns, prompting Wefunile Driving School to issue a legal notice on August 19, 2024, stating its intention to sue the station for defamation.
The letter read: ““I am writing to inform you of my intention to sue NBS Television station for defamation and false reporting. The recent broadcast on 19th August 2024 at 9 p.m. contained grossly inaccurate and misleading information about me, causing harm to my reputation and livelihood. The false reporting, led by one of your investigative journalists, made the following false claims: that I am the owner of Wefunile Company Limited, which has scammed individuals by promising to issue them driving permits.
This is false. We have evidence and documentation to refute these claims, including the certificate of incorporation of Wefunile Company Limited, which I do not own. We have also sent letters stopping them from using the name Wefuniile Driving School, and we have copied all necessary authorities, including URSB, UPF, MOWT, and URA.”
In an effort to protect its reputation, Wefunile Driving School sent a cease-and-desist notice to Wefunile Company Limited, instructing them to stop using the Wefunile name in their operations.
Cease-and-Desist Notice
A cease-and-desist notice was recently issued to Matthew Mugisha Mwebaze of Wefunile Company Limited, warning him to immediately stop harassing Mr. Tumusiime Lloyd Magara, the proprietor of Wefuniile Driving School. The letter, referencing the ongoing harassment, emphasized that Mugisha’s actions lacked any legitimate purpose and were unwarranted.
The notice sternly stated: “Reference is made to the above-mentioned subject matter and your continuous hounding and unwarranted harassment of our proprietor, Mr. Tumusiime Lloyd Magara. It appears that, for some unknown reason, you are intent on harassing our business with no legitimate purpose of communication, which must stop immediately.
Your actions are devoid of the standard expected from a reasonable person with faculties still intact. Furthermore, we have been informed that you have acquired a firearm, which you use to threaten to shoot and kill people. This letter serves as notice to desist from attacking our proprietor or any of our staff. Should you continue with this irrational behavior, necessary legal action, both criminal and civil, will be instituted against you without further notice. We await your response if you are brave enough…”
The situation illustrates the escalating tensions between the two parties, with Wefunile Driving School seeking to protect its reputation while warning of serious legal consequences should Mugisha’s behavior continue.
In a recent development, the registrar of companies issued a ruling clarifying the distinction between Wefunile Driving School and Wefunile Company Limited, aiming to resolve confusion between the two entities and address the underlying issues contributing to the dispute; “The two traders’ names, as indicated earlier, are distinct, and the submission that the names Wefuniile Driving School and Wefunile Company Limited are similar has been found baseless…”
The complainant officially registered Wefunile Company Limited on April 3, 2019, and later claimed that a similar name was used by the respondent, who registered the business name Wefuniile Driving School on February 23, 2021. According to the complainant, the name similarity was misleading, especially since one of the objectives in Wefunile Company Limited’s memorandum and articles of association was to establish and operate a driving school.
Believing the name duplication was intentional and potentially harmful to his business, the complainant filed a formal complaint on March 31, 2023, seeking to address the issue.
Despite these concerns, the registrar reviewed the case and ultimately dismissed the complaint as lacking merit, determining that the respondent’s actions did not violate any naming regulations or rights associated with Wefunile Company Limited.
“CWI (Matthew Mugisha) testified that when incorporating Wefunile Company Limited, one of his objectives was to operate a driving school, and thus, the respondent’s business name was already covered under Wefunile Company Limited’s objectives. URSB [Uganda Registration Services Bureau] does not consider the objectives of other companies when reserving names or registering a company or business name because the legal criteria for registration are clear,” the registrar’s report noted.
The report further emphasized: “An action for passing off may succeed where the integral parts of two company names are synonymous with each other. However, Wefunile Company Limited and Wefuniile Driving School are not synonymous, except for the first word ‘Wefunile.’ When a trader adopts words in common use for a trade name, some risk of confusion is inevitable.
The court will accept comparatively small differences as sufficient to avert confusion. In this case, the respondent’s name is not confusingly similar to that of the complainant and does not constitute passing off. The complaint is dismissed with no order as to costs between the complainant and the respondents.”
The registrar’s report also highlighted that: “The word ‘Wefunile,’ belonging to one entity or business name, cannot prevent its reservation and registration by another entity unless it has been protected under intellectual property law.
For example, URSB could reserve ‘Wefunile Logistics Limited,’ ‘Wefunile Freight and Forwarders Limited,’ and none of these would be considered similar to each other because they are distinct and not confusingly similar to the public.”
The report concluded: “No person is entitled to represent their goods as being the goods of another, nor is anyone permitted to use any mark, sign, symbol, device, or other means whereby, without directly making a false representation to a purchaser, they enable that purchaser to mislead or make a false representation to someone else, such as the ultimate customer.”
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Moses Tayebwa, the secretary of the Uganda Driving Schools Operators and Instructors Association, addressed the widespread problem of fraudulent driving schools in the country. He remarked: “It’s important for people to always do a little bit of due diligence when it comes to getting services from driving schools to prevent scenarios where their funds are stolen. The government, through the Ministry of Works and Transport, should provide accredited lists of organizations licensed to offer driving training services.”
Efforts by this writer to obtain a response from the Ministry of Works regarding the confusion between Wefunile Company Limited and Wefunile Driving School were unsuccessful, as no comment had been received by the time of publication.
This case highlights the urgent need for the Ministry of Works to improve its due diligence when issuing licenses to driving schools. Strengthening the vetting process could help prevent fraudulent activities and protect Ugandans from falling victim to dishonest operators.
