Security minister Gen Elly Tumwine says the army doesn’t do work to impress any Ugandan and that they don’t need direction from anyone because they have done this for some good time and know how to handle issues. Speaking in a dialogue meeting held last evening with journalists and their leaders at the office of the prime minister, Gen Tumwine assured journalists that all the officers who insulted them during the recent riots in Kampala and other parts of the country were arrested and are going to face the law but not publically as the journalists demand.
Tumwine says that it has cost the UPDF senior officers a lot to build a well-disciplined force and they don’t want anything which taints that image. “It’s not that we are learning how to discipline our soldiers now, we have been doing it, even this week one of the generals has been facing the court martial,” Gen Tumwine said.
“We shall not depend on you journalists, we are now going to get our own cameras and use them to get information on journalists and officers who misbehave and always join rioters. Your bosses should also provide you with bullet proof press jackets because anything can happen in the field,” the general added.
However he warned journalists to always be cautious of what they say on radio, television, in papers and on social media because one reckless comment can have diverse effects on the country’s security. He cited the incident where stones were thrown at the president’s vehicle saying that they would have killed many people legally but the president sympathized with them .
The Chief of Defence Forces Gen. David Muhoozi who was also in attendance warned young people to avoid being lied and used by politicians for their own political motives but rather use the right channels if they want to take the leadership of this country.
“Learn from your elders “jajjas” if you want power, don’t be lied to that you have numbers, once you intimidate the “jajjas”, they can also go back to trenches and you know what it,” Gen Muhoozi warned.
Muhoozi emphasized that the youth who think that it’s their time to take up the leadership of this country to use organized means. Meanwhile, Gen. Tumwine said that the reason why UPDF officers are always seen holding sticks is to help them avoid breaking people’s bones, and it’s the reason why they abandoned batons.
