By Sadique Bamwita
ENTEBBE
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has held a meeting with Girma Wake, a retired airline industry executive and former chairman of the Ethiopian Airlines Group, on plans to appoint him to replace Jenifer Bamuturaki, the outgoing Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Uganda Airlines.
The meeting that took place on Wednesday, 4th February, 2026, followed a decision by President Museveni not to renew the contract of Jennifer Bamuturaki, whose term ends in May this year.
“I met Mr Girma Wake, the former CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, alongside Mr Robert Kateera at State House today. We discussed matters regarding air transport, among other issues,” Museveni said.
The meeting comes amid ongoing investigations into allegations of abuse of office, embezzlement of funds, and false accounting involving officials of Uganda Airlines. The probes are being conducted jointly by the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) and the State House Anti-Corruption Unit. The probe relates to several financial transactions undertaken by the national carrier.
On February 4, 2026, the Board of Directors of Uganda Airlines advertised the position, seeking to recruit a visionary and results-oriented Chief Executive Officer to provide strategic leadership and oversee the airline’s sustainable growth and performance.
Girma Wake previously served as Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian Airlines from 2004 to 2011 and later chaired the board of Rwanda’s national carrier, RwandAir, from 2012 to 2017. He returned to Ethiopian Airlines Group in 2018 as a board member and was appointed chairman in 2022.
In June 2023, he was replaced as board chairman by Yilma Merdassa, the head of the Ethiopian Air Force. At the time, Ethiopian Airlines said Girma’s “contribution to the growth and success of the airline group has been enormous and will take a special place in the history of the group.”
Girma joined Ethiopian Airlines in 1965 after graduating, at a time when the carrier was largely managed by American personnel from Trans World Airlines (TWA). He rose through the ranks to become one of the first Ethiopians to hold senior executive positions at the airline.
He served at Ethiopian Airlines for nearly three decades before resigning in 1993 following leadership disagreements with the newly installed Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) government.
