Ankunda takes the stage as Kulayigye bows out
He stands out tall, his plain green officer’s uniform immaculately neat. His black boots are spotlessly clean. Captain Paddy Ankunda, the new Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) spokesman, booms with confidence when he talks. Ankunda was last week named replacement for Major Felix Kulayigye, w
By Joshua Kato
He stands out tall, his plain green officer’s uniform immaculately neat. His black boots are spotlessly clean. Captain Paddy Ankunda, the new Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) spokesman, booms with confidence when he talks. Ankunda was last week named replacement for Major Felix Kulayigye, who has already left for a Senior Commanders’ course in Kenya.
“I have a lot of experience in this field of talking,†Ankunda says. “I have no jitters running down my spine over what to expect.â€
Having served in Somalia, in Sudan and in Karamoja, three of the most “feared†military areas in the region, Ankunda (which means God loves me) should obviously have no more fears.
Ankunda is one of the crop of army officers who joined the UPDF straight from the university in 1998. “I walked from my examination room at Makerere University, direct to my training at Singo,†he says. From Singo, he served as a Private at the Armoured Brigade, Masaka for two years.
In 2001, he went for a Cadet course at Kimaka Army College in Jinja. After the course, he was commissioned as a Lieutenant. He briefly served in the Presidential Guard Brigade, before returning to his former unit in Masaka as the Brigade Political Commissar leading 3,000 soldiers.
“Being a unit Political Commissar is like being the Inspector General of the unit. You are the pivotal person in terms of mobilising the soldiers and shaping their ideological clarity. You are also the link between the soldiers and the civil population,†he explains.
Certainly, having studied Political Science at the university helped shape him for the role.
In 2003, the Commander in Chief deployed him in an area that, according to Ankunda, has helped shape his world. He was deployed as the UPDF spokesman for ‘Operation Iron Fist’, one of the largest operations the UPDF has ever launched against the LRA.
“This deployment opened my eyes to a lot of experiences,†he remembers. As an adventurous person, he looked forward to trying some of his combat tricks during this time. However, he almost lost his life.
In the course of his duty in the North, he has had tens of close shaves with death. One of them is unforgettable.
“I was involved in a helicopter crash in Pader,†he says. The crash happened at about the same time the UPDF killed LRA commander Tolbert Nyeko. Ankunda was taking journalists to the site of a fierce battle between the LRA and the UPDF. But the MI-17 UPDF chopper failed to land properly because the landing site had many trees. The rotors clipped some branches and sent it almost out of control.
“I jumped out of the chopper, it had no rotors, and the cockpit was open. “It was bad,†he says, while showing me a scar in the middle of his fore-head.
After ‘Iron Fist’, he went for a course in civil/military relations in Sweden and when he came back, he was deployed at the Uganda Media Centre.
The centre was in its early stages and together with the then director, Robert Kabushenga, and other people, they struggled to sustain it. Ankunda says all this experience was preparing him for greater challenges in life.
When peace talks started in 2006, he was deployed as the spokesperson for the peace team in Juba, South Sudan. It was while serving in Juba that he was deployed to Somalia as spokesman for the African Union force.
“I knew we were going for a difficult job, but I also knew that it was worth doing,†he says.
The Somalia deployment was made moments after his wedding. It, in fact, turned out to be a bizarre way of spending his honeymoon.
He became a regular interviewee on all major media stations across the world. He would sometimes feature on BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera and many others in one day. He became an international personality.
In Somalia, Ankunda had several close shaves. One of which was early in the operation.
“We were waiting for a ship carrying our logistics to dock at Mogadishu Port. However, Somali Islamist gunmen had vowed not to allow the ship to dock at all costs. As we were unloading the equipment, they opened a barrage with mortars and other big guns. There was nothing we could do because our weapons were still on the ship,†he recalls. They, however, managed to unload their equipment and started the peace-keeping exercise.
Somalia was a new experience to Ankunda. “There is no government. They govern themselves in clan systems and the clan with the most gunmen takes the day,†he says. On the other hand, the AU forces have made their mark and created a niche amongst the population.
Serving in Somalia should be a big addition to any soldier’s CV. In the US, for example, soldiers who served in Vietnam during the 1970s and those serving in Iraq are rated highly. “I will receive a medal for this service and I will proudly hang it on my shirt,†he says.
On his new office, Ankunda has hope for the better. He is the 5th UPDF spokesman. Most of the others served the office with distinction but Ankunda hopes to go a step further.
“If resources allow, I want to empower all unit spokespersons to do their work better,†he says. The UPDF has in the last few years created a pool of regional and division spokesmen, making the army’s work easier.
Aged 33, Ankunda was born to Ben Rwanguha. He went to Kinyansano Primary School, Rukungiri. He joined Makobore High School for his O-level and Bujaga High for his A-level.
He then joined Makerere University, where he graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Political Science. He is married to Patience Ankunda.
He stands out tall, his plain green officer’s uniform immaculately neat. His black boots are spotlessly clean. Captain Paddy Ankunda, the new Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) spokesman, booms with confidence when he talks. Ankunda was last week named replacement for Major Felix Kulayigye, who has already left for a Senior Commanders’ course in Kenya.
“I have a lot of experience in this field of talking,†Ankunda says. “I have no jitters running down my spine over what to expect.â€
Having served in Somalia, in Sudan and in Karamoja, three of the most “feared†military areas in the region, Ankunda (which means God loves me) should obviously have no more fears.
Ankunda is one of the crop of army officers who joined the UPDF straight from the university in 1998. “I walked from my examination room at Makerere University, direct to my training at Singo,†he says. From Singo, he served as a Private at the Armoured Brigade, Masaka for two years.
In 2001, he went for a Cadet course at Kimaka Army College in Jinja. After the course, he was commissioned as a Lieutenant. He briefly served in the Presidential Guard Brigade, before returning to his former unit in Masaka as the Brigade Political Commissar leading 3,000 soldiers.
“Being a unit Political Commissar is like being the Inspector General of the unit. You are the pivotal person in terms of mobilising the soldiers and shaping their ideological clarity. You are also the link between the soldiers and the civil population,†he explains.
Certainly, having studied Political Science at the university helped shape him for the role.
In 2003, the Commander in Chief deployed him in an area that, according to Ankunda, has helped shape his world. He was deployed as the UPDF spokesman for ‘Operation Iron Fist’, one of the largest operations the UPDF has ever launched against the LRA.
“This deployment opened my eyes to a lot of experiences,†he remembers. As an adventurous person, he looked forward to trying some of his combat tricks during this time. However, he almost lost his life.
In the course of his duty in the North, he has had tens of close shaves with death. One of them is unforgettable.
“I was involved in a helicopter crash in Pader,†he says. The crash happened at about the same time the UPDF killed LRA commander Tolbert Nyeko. Ankunda was taking journalists to the site of a fierce battle between the LRA and the UPDF. But the MI-17 UPDF chopper failed to land properly because the landing site had many trees. The rotors clipped some branches and sent it almost out of control.
“I jumped out of the chopper, it had no rotors, and the cockpit was open. “It was bad,†he says, while showing me a scar in the middle of his fore-head.
After ‘Iron Fist’, he went for a course in civil/military relations in Sweden and when he came back, he was deployed at the Uganda Media Centre.
The centre was in its early stages and together with the then director, Robert Kabushenga, and other people, they struggled to sustain it. Ankunda says all this experience was preparing him for greater challenges in life.
When peace talks started in 2006, he was deployed as the spokesperson for the peace team in Juba, South Sudan. It was while serving in Juba that he was deployed to Somalia as spokesman for the African Union force.
“I knew we were going for a difficult job, but I also knew that it was worth doing,†he says.
The Somalia deployment was made moments after his wedding. It, in fact, turned out to be a bizarre way of spending his honeymoon.
He became a regular interviewee on all major media stations across the world. He would sometimes feature on BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera and many others in one day. He became an international personality.
In Somalia, Ankunda had several close shaves. One of which was early in the operation.
“We were waiting for a ship carrying our logistics to dock at Mogadishu Port. However, Somali Islamist gunmen had vowed not to allow the ship to dock at all costs. As we were unloading the equipment, they opened a barrage with mortars and other big guns. There was nothing we could do because our weapons were still on the ship,†he recalls. They, however, managed to unload their equipment and started the peace-keeping exercise.
Somalia was a new experience to Ankunda. “There is no government. They govern themselves in clan systems and the clan with the most gunmen takes the day,†he says. On the other hand, the AU forces have made their mark and created a niche amongst the population.
Serving in Somalia should be a big addition to any soldier’s CV. In the US, for example, soldiers who served in Vietnam during the 1970s and those serving in Iraq are rated highly. “I will receive a medal for this service and I will proudly hang it on my shirt,†he says.
On his new office, Ankunda has hope for the better. He is the 5th UPDF spokesman. Most of the others served the office with distinction but Ankunda hopes to go a step further.
“If resources allow, I want to empower all unit spokespersons to do their work better,†he says. The UPDF has in the last few years created a pool of regional and division spokesmen, making the army’s work easier.
Aged 33, Ankunda was born to Ben Rwanguha. He went to Kinyansano Primary School, Rukungiri. He joined Makobore High School for his O-level and Bujaga High for his A-level.
He then joined Makerere University, where he graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Political Science. He is married to Patience Ankunda.