Celebrating Independence without Gen Aronda

By Paddy Ankunda

This year has been another long year and a difficult one at that. Difficult in a sense that we have an important election in a couple of months from now, for which we must prepare and ensure a peaceful, free and fair election.

Also, in the last couple of months Uganda has suffered a number of misfortunes. First was the al shabab attack on our base in Somalia in which we lost over a dozen soldiers. This was the first such attack on UPDF since 2007. Secondly, there was this mysterious death of our commander and leader Hon Gen Aronda Nyakairima.

I first met Gen Aronda sixteen years ago at Armored Brigade Headquarters in Masaka where he was the Commanding Officer of the Brigade. The brigade was my first unit of deployment having completed basic military training at Singo Training School. Since then I got to know Gen Aronda in great depth. As a young soldier who had joined the forces with a lot of expectations, the late helped us to discover our potential.

As a private soldier (not an officer then) and as a young university graduate, I had this imagination that the future was bright. Like my other colleagues, we had a belief that it was a matter of time before we became important people for the institution. However, we also realized that a number of other senior soldiers (especially those who were not as educated) were not very comfortable with this new group of educated people who they thought would one day take responsibility as their leaders and commanders.

That time the current Chief of Staff Air force, Col James Birungi was a second Lieutenant while the current Armored Brigade Commander, Brig Ssemwanga was a Lieutenant. The UPDF Joint Chief of Staff today, Major Gen Wilson Mbasu Mbadi was at the rank of Captain. These were some of the educated officers we mingled and worked with. I thank them for their steadfastness.

At the rank of a Colonel then, Gen Aronda stood at the helm, with unwavering conviction that the future of the Defence Forces would be built by educated people. That largely explains his commitment and prioritization of training when he became the Army Commander in 2003. Guided by the Commander in Chief, he initiated the building of key training colleges. These have been responsible for nurturing most of the officers he would identify for leadership and command roles. There is probably no single officer who worked with the fallen general and he didn’t know their name.

As for Armored Brigade, the unit has till this day built for itself a legacy of being a key producer of clear-headed and progressive UPDF leaders. Gen Aronda led with integrity and led by example. In him there was this type of person with hidden kindness. He commanded respect as a leader and used his moral astuteness to lead his men.

He demanded results in perfection. He gave guidance on assigned tasks. He called to find out progress. He stood for achievement and nothing else. In his pursuit to professionalize the institution, many found themselves on a wrong side of the curve. This is the reason many saw him as a strict disciplinarian. However, for those who understood his methods, and had the zeal to work for success, they achieved together in unison.

Now as we celebrate this 53rd Independence Anniversary, he is not here to dine with us. He is somewhere working for the Lord. What a commander has God gotten for himself in Gen Aronda. May his soul Rest in eternal peace.

The writer is the Defence & UPDF Spokesman

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