President Yoweri Museveni has questioned the need for heavy security deployment in the Kawempe North by-election.
In a statement released on his official X platform on Sunday, the President stated that while the elections were marked by serious allegations of ballot stuffing, altering results, and intimidation, the larger issue of why were security forces, especially the UPDF and JATT, called to manage crowds during an election was pointed out.
In his statement, Museveni raised the critical question: “I have heard People talking about the harsh methods by some security elements, especially against the journalists. We are studying this. However, the Original question should be: “Why should the UPDF and JATT have to be deployed in crowd management?” he questioned
He pointed out that Uganda is widely recognized as an island of peace, largely due to the UPDF’s efforts in securing the country from external threats, such as the ADF, cattle rustlers in Karamoja, and terrorist organizations like al-Shabaab.
“Uganda is like and island of peace in the Region. Why? It is because of the UPDF. They have enough work fighting ADF, the cattle-rustlers in Karamoja, Kony in Central African Republic (CAR), al-shabaab in Somalia, etc. There, they shoot to kill. That is why night club goers can dance the whole night in peace. Why, then, do they get diverted to deal with crowds? It is because of the indiscipline of some opposition groups.’ He explained
Museveni suggested that opposition groups are directly responsible for causing disturbances that result in the deployment of military forces.
He made reference to the Kabaka riots of 2009 and the November 2020 riots, both of which led to violence, deaths, and widespread chaos. His words were pointed: “Who organized these riots? Where was the Army?”
He explained that he personally deployed commandos in response to the November 2020 violence, which included attacks on police officers and the undressing of NRM women.
“Who organized the Kabaka riots of September 10-12 2009? Who organized the 2020 riots of November 18th to 20th where People were killed, NRM women were undressed, Policemen were attacked? Where was the Army in all that? I deployed the commandos on the 20th of November and they crushed the insurrection. Who organized the panga groups in Masaka?’ He further stated
He went on to point out the mistakes made by the military in crowd management, noting that the soldiers may have been unprepared for non-lethal roles.
“The mistakes the soldiers may do could be on account of preparing for those non-lethal roles when they are diverted from their work of fighting on account of indiscipline of some actors. These are the criminal mistakes of the Opposition.” he said
Museveni who ordered an investigation into the into the Kawempe North by-election asked who was behind the destruction of ballot boxes in Kazo-Angola and Mbogo Centre.
“The following allegations have come up: ballot papers stuffing, altering results, destroying ballot boxes in Kazo-Angola, Mbogo Mosque zone, etc., because, apparently, some People did not want those votes to be counted, campaigning at the Polling Stations, intimidation, violence, etc.” He wrote
At the same time, he acknowledged organizational mistakes on the NRM side, particularly when it comes to working collectively and engaging Wanainchi effectively. He added that the Central Executive Committee (CEC) is addressing these shortcomings, with a recent meeting held to discuss improvements.
The president , addressing the underlying cause of such heavy security presence said.
“It is because of the indiscipline of some opposition groups,” he asserted. According to Museveni, “security forces were deployed because of the actions of opposition groups, not because of a genuine security threat.”
Museveni made it clear that while the deployment of security forces had curbed the potential for larger-scale violence, it couldn’t prevent micro-crimes like vote tampering, which should have been handled by election officials.
