Police issues security, traffic rules for Namboole

By Steven Candia

THE Police have issued security and traffic guidelines ahead of today’s NRM delegates’ conference at Namboole Stadium.

Under the security guidelines, the Police said they put in place an elaborate structure and only delegates who have been accredited will be able to access the stadium for the conference.

The Police said all roads passing close to the stadium, particularly the one linking Kireka to Bweyogerere, and running parallel with the railway line, will be closed to the public.

“Any person who does not have anything to with the conference will not be able to use this road. It will only be open to delegates to the conference,” Dr. Steven Kasiima, the traffic boss said.

He, however, noted that the Kampala-Jinja highway from Bweyogerere through Kireka, will remain open to the public. Heavy trucks heading to the city will be diverted at Mukono through Kalagi, Gayaza to Kasangati. 

“Also, those from Busega will use the Northern Bypass to Kasangati,” Kasiima said. On the diversion at Namboole, he noted that the road from Jokas Hotel through Kinawataka to the city will be open.

The Police spokesperson, Fred Enanga, said they will not take anything for granted and have deployed personnel to counter any incident.

“We have an effective security infrastructure in place, with all the components you can think of,” Enanga said.

He said the deployment should be able to respond to any incident, including terrorism. The nature of the deployment is to create and guarantee an enabling environment for the delegates to deliberate without any disruptions.

All delegates to the conference will be subjected to a thorough search.

“Only those with accreditation from Kololo independence ground will be allowed to access the venue,” Enanga said. 

 true

He said the Police was deployed following a request by the NRM acting secretary general, Dorothy Hyuha. This is because of the reports that there are factions that are out to disrupt the conference.

There was a visibly heightened security deployment at the Kololo Independence Grounds yesterday, manned jointly by the Police and army.

All roads around the grounds were blocked and motorists for a greater part of the day had to use alternative, but longer routes to get to their destinations.

On Saturday, the Inspector General of Police, Gen. Kale Kayihura, said NRM delegates turning up for today’s conference at Namboole should be on the lookout for criminal elements bent on sabotaging the meeting.

Addressing a press conference, Gen. Kayihura said they had received reports that some individuals were planning to frustrate the meeting.

“We shall not allow anybody or any group to disrupt the conference, or the business life of the city, or, for that matter, of any part of the country. The Police and sister security agencies are closely monitoring the organisers of these illegal activities,” the IGP added.

He singled out two groups, the NRM Poor Youth and Kampala Youth Rescue Mission, who he advised to stop their illegal activities of organising rallies because they had not notifi ed Police in accordance with the law.

The IGP said they were investigating reports that some of the criminal elements had already approached different meal providers and convinced them to poison the delegates.

Kayihura also spoke about the rising violent crime, particularly, homicides, armed robberies on highways and continued threat of terrorism.

He said the Police and sister security agencies had increased deployments in the Kampala Metropolitan Policing Area, the highways and other vulnerable parts of the country. 

Additional reporting by Charles Etukuri