Deputy CDF Okiding apologises over Kawempe North poll violence

___________________

The Army leadership on Thursday apologised for the violence during the recently concluded Kawempe North byelection.

The race, which was won by National Unity Platforms’s (NUP) Erias Luyimbazi Nalukoola, saw several people including politicians and over a dozen journalists assaulted. The journalists included Miracle Ibrah of Top TV, Steven Kibwiika (Spark TV), Francis Isano (Next Media), Raymond Tamale (NTV), Denis Kabugo (NTV), Abubaker Lubowa (Daily Monitor), and David Ijjo (NTV).

Others included Vision Group journalists Everest Mukiibi (Bukedde Radio), Ruhweza Ibrahim (New Vision), and Isaac Nuwagaba (New Vision), who were reportedly roughed up in drones.

With no coherent pronouncement forthcoming, media bodies imposed a ban on covering security events. At the beginning of this week, Minister for Internal Affairs Gen. Kahinda Otafiire absolved himself of blame.

The Ruhinda North lawmaker, who is the global chairman of the Pan-African Movement, said he was in Zimbabwe at the time when all hell broke loose and declined to comment, saying the President had already pronounced himself on the matter.

“My colleague, the minister, addressed Parliament, I am told, and ably put our position. The President has also made a position, and we are also bound by a collective duty of responsibility to follow the statement of the chief executive. So if you have any questions after the statement of the chief executive, I think you better refer those questions to the chief executive because we are bound by collective cabinet responsibility, and he is the chair of cabinet,” he said.

“When you have reached Jesus Christ, you don’t need a Bishop,” the minister added.

Army speaks out

However, while appearing before the Defence and Internal Affairs Committee on Thursday, March 27, 2025, Deputy Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) Gen. Sam Okiding expressed remorse, saying whatever was captured was at the volition of the perpetrators and not the force.

“Allow me to take this opportunity to apologise to this committee. We are very sorry. We saw what happened; it was purely operational mistakes. That’s not our doctrine, but out of 1,000 people, there are those who cannot control their emotional conscience. When provoked, somebody overreacts. That occurred out of provocation, but it didn’t warrant that degree of reaction,” Okiding said.

“We saw it and took action. People were arrested, a committee was constituted to investigate. As we speak, they are in jails, and the investigations are going on, and we shall punish them. There is no escape, no shortcuts, but once again, we really apologise,” he added.

Okiding’s comments were in response to concerns earlier raised by Lwemiyaga County MP Theodore Ssekikubo (NRM).

“We had the worst experience where we witnessed elections in Kawempe, where men and women in uniform were captured on camera. We had thought that we would have the matter debated on the floor of Parliament, but we thought this would be the appropriate forum to have it…” Ssekikubo implored.

Defence Minister Jacob Oboth Oboth and Wilson Kajwengye, the Defence Committee chairperson, applauded the three-star general’s decency.

“That reinforces the understanding that this Eleventh Parliament and the committee have that this mighty Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) is professional… Make sure it comes to a conclusive end so that it is not repeated,” Kajwengye stated.