We didn’t kill Kayiira â€" Museveni
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has said his government was not involved in the murder of Dr. Andrew Kayiira almost 20 years ago. Kayiira, the erstwhile leader of Uganda Freedom Movement, was shot dead by unknown gunmen.
By Cyprian Musoke
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has said his government was not involved in the murder of Dr. Andrew Kayiira almost 20 years ago.
“They (Democratic Party) know very well that our government is not a government of killers. We do not believe in killing people at all,†the president said in an interview with Radio West at his country home in Rwakitura yesterday.
Kayiira, the erstwhile leader of Uganda Freedom Movement, was shot dead by unknown gunmen at the home of his friend, Henry Gombya, in a Makindye suburb on March 5, 1987, a few days after he had been acquitted of treason charges.
Museveni directed the hiring of the British metropolitan police, Scotland Yard, to investigate the murder, which released its report on May 7, 1987.
The report, with Ref. No OG27/87/2, was published in full by The New Vision last Friday.
During a rally in Masaka on Saturday, the Democratic Party (DP) read extracts from what it claimed was another version of the Scotland Yard report, but refused to distribute it to the press for verification.
By organising rallies, Museveni said, DP wanted to provoke the government into using excessive force in a bid to sabotage the impending Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
“They want us to use excessive force so that they can accuse us of violating peoples’ rights but we shall not fall into that trap,†the president said.
Meanwhile, the army has rejected the story of Corporal Eddie Sande (right), who claims he took part in Kayiira’s murder, as “ridiculous and laughableâ€.
“The one we have on file ran away from the kadogo school in Mbarara. He approached (former DP president) Ssemogerere, claiming he had information about the murder of Kayiira. He at one time resided with Ssemogerere, who helped him to get into St. Maria Goretti school in Katende on a scholarship. But when DP insisted he should make his information public, he ran away,†army spokesman Maj. Felix Kulayigye said.
Sande then approached the Ugandan intelligence services. “He came to us, claiming Ssemogerere wanted him to tell a story which he didn’t want to tell. He alleged he was a member of the People’s Redemption Army (PRA) and knew everything about Rwanda’s involvement in PRA activities. We dismissed him when we found out that he was a liar,†Kulayigye said.
According to the army, Sande has a long history of trying to sell fabricated stories to different people. “He is a masquerader for commercial purposes,†Kulayigye added. He dismissed Sande’s ‘confession’ in The Daily Monitor as a “fabricationâ€.
“In terms of army procedures, it is factually wrong. How could a deputy army commander take charge of a platoon? And how could a deputy army commander go to a brigade commander to report ‘mission completed’?
Moreover, Sande’s name is nowhere mentioned in the Scotland Yard report. Could the best investigation team in the world have missed his role in the murder?â€
PRESIDENT Yoweri Museveni has said his government was not involved in the murder of Dr. Andrew Kayiira almost 20 years ago.
“They (Democratic Party) know very well that our government is not a government of killers. We do not believe in killing people at all,†the president said in an interview with Radio West at his country home in Rwakitura yesterday.
Kayiira, the erstwhile leader of Uganda Freedom Movement, was shot dead by unknown gunmen at the home of his friend, Henry Gombya, in a Makindye suburb on March 5, 1987, a few days after he had been acquitted of treason charges.
Museveni directed the hiring of the British metropolitan police, Scotland Yard, to investigate the murder, which released its report on May 7, 1987.
The report, with Ref. No OG27/87/2, was published in full by The New Vision last Friday.
During a rally in Masaka on Saturday, the Democratic Party (DP) read extracts from what it claimed was another version of the Scotland Yard report, but refused to distribute it to the press for verification.
By organising rallies, Museveni said, DP wanted to provoke the government into using excessive force in a bid to sabotage the impending Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
“They want us to use excessive force so that they can accuse us of violating peoples’ rights but we shall not fall into that trap,†the president said.
Meanwhile, the army has rejected the story of Corporal Eddie Sande (right), who claims he took part in Kayiira’s murder, as “ridiculous and laughableâ€.
“The one we have on file ran away from the kadogo school in Mbarara. He approached (former DP president) Ssemogerere, claiming he had information about the murder of Kayiira. He at one time resided with Ssemogerere, who helped him to get into St. Maria Goretti school in Katende on a scholarship. But when DP insisted he should make his information public, he ran away,†army spokesman Maj. Felix Kulayigye said.
Sande then approached the Ugandan intelligence services. “He came to us, claiming Ssemogerere wanted him to tell a story which he didn’t want to tell. He alleged he was a member of the People’s Redemption Army (PRA) and knew everything about Rwanda’s involvement in PRA activities. We dismissed him when we found out that he was a liar,†Kulayigye said.
According to the army, Sande has a long history of trying to sell fabricated stories to different people. “He is a masquerader for commercial purposes,†Kulayigye added. He dismissed Sande’s ‘confession’ in The Daily Monitor as a “fabricationâ€.
“In terms of army procedures, it is factually wrong. How could a deputy army commander take charge of a platoon? And how could a deputy army commander go to a brigade commander to report ‘mission completed’?
Moreover, Sande’s name is nowhere mentioned in the Scotland Yard report. Could the best investigation team in the world have missed his role in the murder?â€