There has been a reported fight between Uganda people’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and Uganda Police Force among other security agencies in connection to the murder of Assistant Inspector of Police, Andrew Felix Kaweesi.
Even when these fights were shown on TV (video), Bright Rwamirama, State Minister for Veteran Affairs says all is well in Uganda’s security organs.
Appearing before MPs on the Parliamentary Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs today morning, Rwamirama said denied reports that there are fights among security organs, noting that the accusations are simply a creation of the media.
“There is absolutely no impasse between security bodies. It is occasioned by some elements in the media. It is the media that created the impression that there is a standoff between UPDF and Police and it is regrettable. UPDF is operating well with sister security agencies,” Rwamirama said.
Asked about the identity behind the security organ that arrested top Police officials over abduction of Rwandan nationals, the minister denied the army having a hand in their arrest, revealing that it was Police that arrested their own.
“It wasn’t CMI that arrested those Police officers, it was Police that arrested their own and handed them over to CMI for investigation,” Rwamirama said. On why the Kaweesi murder suspects were re-arrested after gaining freedom from Courts of Law, the Army informed MPs that the plain clothed operatives that carried out the arrest were attached to CMI.
The Veterans Affairs Minister revealed that Umaru Maganda and Ahmed Ssenfuka were rearrested for being members of ADF and letting them join the community would lead them into fleeing the country to join ADF and cause mayhem in public.
However, Lwemiyaga County MP Theodore Ssekikubo wondered why CMI didn’t keep the suspects in custody or amend the charge sheet instead of having them rearrested after getting their freedom.
Rwamirama defended their re-arrest, saying: “If those people hadn’t been [re]arrested, they would have fled the country to go join ADF.”
He declined to comment why the suspects were kept in custody for 21days without being paraded in court as stipulated by the constitution.
“I am not the one responsible for prosecution. Prosecutors were on strike, so our job was to arrest the suspects and pass them over to Police,” he said.
