I do not feel safe in my office - Gen. Kayihura

Mar 25, 2017

Kayihura hinted on December 28, last year, that he felt unsecure whenever he was in his office at Naguru. He has been the target of the killers.

A number of government officials were surveilled and targeted by the assassins, who, on Friday last week, murdered the Assistant Inspector General of Police Andrew Felix Kaweesi, his body guard and driver.

A senior Police officer told Saturday Vision that they had got wind of a terror-like attack that targeted key Government officials, who included the Inspector General of Police, Gen. Kale Kayihura, members of the Judiciary, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, MPs and top security officials.

The source said the assassins planned to attack Kayihura as he participated in the Entebbe Community Police Marathon that was held two days after Kaweesi was shot dead. Kayihura, however, downplayed the fears raised, insisting that security agencies were in charge of the situation.

"We receive looming threats all the time. Once you put on uniform, you become a legitimate target for criminals. You are hunting for them and they are also hunting for you. You are a threat to their criminality and they will do whatever it takes to eliminate you," Kayihura noted.

The senior security source, also told Saturday Vision that the assassins of the late Kaweesi carefully planned and surveyed their targets for close to six months, studying their daily routines. Kaweesi and two other police officers were shot dead on Friday last week about 500 metres from his  home in Kulambiro, Nakawa Division in Kampala.

The source further intimated that the killing of Kaweesi was supposed to have taken place at the same time as the killing of former Senior Principal State Attorney, Joan Kagezi, who was shot dead at Najjera, in Wakiso district on March 30, 2015, as she drove back home. The late Kagezi, was the Assistant Director of Public Prosecution and the head of the International Criminal Division at the justice ministry.

According to the source, it was possible that the killers followed different targets, monitored their security lapses, were aware what time they left and returned home, knew about their family members and their social hangouts. The killing of Kaweesi was done in a similar fashion to several other deaths of top Muslim clerics and Government officials, raising fears that there could be a hit gang on the loose. In November last year, a senior military officer, Maj. Sulaiman Kiggundu, was gunned down in the wee hours of the morning as he headed for a radio programme.

In almost all the incidents, the killers trailed their victims on motorcycles, shot them and then fled. Even though several arrests have been made, the increasing trend of murders, especially of senior security officials, have left many in the public worried. "We have a responsibility as the Police to provide security and even though the President talked about the installation of surveillance cameras, we will supplement this with the already existing measures, like community policing, to help rid the country of criminality," Kayihura said.

He hinted on December 28, last year, as he addressed the media at Naguru in Kampala, that he felt unsecure whenever he was in his office at the Naguru Police headquarters. "I do not feel safe here because the security personnel seem to have relaxed. It is not only for me, but all of you here at the Police headquarters," he said.

Kayihura said he was not satisfied with the access control measures and the perimeter security installations at the Police headquarters. "The responsible people need to beef it up. In fact, the next time you (journalists) get inconvenienced, do not complain; it is only a security measure," he noted. "Security will be beefed up at all Police stations because they have now become a target. You should be cautious of even your own shadows," he cautioned.

The newly appointed Police spokesperson and the National Political Commissar, Asan Kasingye, confirmed that the Police has beefed up security of its own officers, including other potentially high profile people, who could be targeted. "We are reviewing the security details of all the top Police officers, Police installations throughout the country and also for all those officials in sensitive positions," Kasingye said.

He also said they planned to get their fellow top Police officers bullet proof cars. Saturday Vision has also learnt that several security agencies had joined the investigations into the Kaweesi killing last week. Among those who were carrying out investigations are the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence, the Police, the Flying Squad Unit and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Several arrests have already been made and Kayihura revealed that they already have promising leads to the suspects.

Details and related stories in Saturday Vision

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