Wakiso murders: Know the complexity of dealing with terrorism

Sep 08, 2017

With these gruesome murders still ongoing, the residents need answers, the victims’ justice and the entire country needs reassurance that our security machinery is in charge.

CRIME | WAKISO

By Bryan Nuwagira

There has been a wave of murders and homicides recently in Entebbe in particular and Wakiso at large. The perpetrators or serial killers have been consistent and systematic. In all the murders which are somehow similar, the motives of the murderers are still a mystery. However, the manner in which they have taken their victims' lives leaves readable signals and a traceable cause.


In all these, unusual to his style, the FDC cult god is reasonably silent, not because he is shocked, but perhaps because he is silently cheering on his scouts. This would not be surprising bearing in mind that after the elections, the self-made "people's president" painted a clear writing on the wall. Make UGANDA UNGOVERNABLE. I shall link the message to the messenger later on.

With these gruesome murders still ongoing, the residents need answers, the victims' justice and the entire country needs reassurance that our security machinery is in charge. These demands are justified and asking the police to account to its client which is the population is not too much.

However, in such situations, when pressure mounts, concentration is compromised and in the quest to find quick answers when concentration is compromised, unauthenticated reports and counter reports, contradictions and falsehoods become the order of the day.

Ultimately when the public sniffs any slight lack of co-ordination, trust and confidence in the police wanes.

In the absence of effective communication between the police and the public, theorists' analysts and liars take the day.

I have no doubt that the police have the will and the capacity to carry out a quick and professional investigation into these murders to bring the perpetrators to book and restore calm in Entebbe.

The IGP and his team, however, have to understand the complexity of dealing with terrorism. The terrorist is still masked and can hit at any hour, any day and anywhere in the world later on Entebbe. Once this basic fact is appreciated, police will resort to working professionally and effectively without pressure.

World over, the media is obsessed with numbers and Ugandan media in particular with death. Police and security organs should not leave the work of informing the public to the media, it's the work of PROs in these organisations to update, calm the public and inform all and sundry of the progress of efforts in place.

The public will understand that much as the police is working 24/7, the war on terror and operations in this war are not subject to timetables or fixed dates.

The terrorist is and continues to be innovative, high tech and evolves daily almost mutates like viruses in pathological warfare. There is no antidote to terrorism, yet given the required resources, skills and patience we can ably fight it and keep it in check. The police and its sister  security organs have made huge strides in this war and Ugandans and their properties are secure now more than ever.

Needless to say, in a world infested with corruption, a sensational media, uncontrollable social media and unpatriotic power hungry colonels, the police has to be smarter and always on top of their game.

Now linking these events to the doctor of defiance does not need rocket science neither is this theory baseless. Coming to 2011 elections, the entire country was at peace for the first time in many years.  ADF had been defeated decisively way back, Joseph Kony and his LRA had been relegated to tourists in CAR and the DRC and the Karimojong cattle rustlers were checkmated too. That is why President Museveni and NRM candidates garnered votes in Northern Uganda which had been an opposition stronghold. The FDC had lost the blue districts in Northern Uganda to its nemesis. With peace and sanity restored and communities back on the road to economic recovery, the opposition web of lies were unsustainable.

Fast forward to 2016 elections, President Museveni's most powerful piece on board was the security of all Uganda and he didn't shy away from using this to deliver a humbling mate to the designated loser Col. Besigye. With no more lies to peddle in the north and an eminent defeat in a general election, the prophet of tsunami went to the drawing board and came up with the defiance campaign. The best way to discredit the NRM administration was to dent its security legacy and not wanting to disappoint, the Colonel hit the ground running.

The Kasese insurgency was a brain of the FDC to bring the country to its knees, Winnie Kiiza and her bosses in Najanankumbi cared less about the numbers of the dead and in fact they wanted dead as many as possible including the Musinga. As fate would have it, good prevailed over evil and the NRM leadership had a solution.

With little public support and members of his own party worn out from empty promises, what remains of the hopeless Col. Besigye is to make true of his mission, MAKING UGANDA UNGOVERNABLE. When you look at the victims in Entebbe, you realise that the main aim is to make the murders as horrific as possible,  as similar in fashion as possible and as close to one another as possible. Ultimately, this sows seeds of terror in the populace, women are petrified and President Museveni's ability to protect Ugandans and their properties is brought into disrepute.

I, therefore, strongly believe that Col. Besigye is not just watching. If he is not actively financing and coordinating this anarchy, he is morally supporting his scouts who are doing the dirty work for him.

My appeal to the police is to co-ordinate all your operations, open the communication channels, desist from trying to fix dates and timetable to this problem  and keep the populace calm and as sure as night follows day, good shall prevail over evil.

The writer works with consumer protection at the ministry commerce in Doha Qatar

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