Why Police raided NUP offices
Oct 14, 2020
At Kanjokya street, security recovered several berets, National Resistance Movement T-shirts among other items.
RAID SECURITY
Security agencies on Wednesday raided the National Unity Platform (NUP) offices with the aim of recovering designated official military wear which the party has been using as a symbol.
Uganda Police Force Spokesperson Fred Enanga confirmed the raid was aimed at, "targeting all locations which were illegally manufacturing, supplying, distributing, selling and using uniforms and accoutrements whose ownership and patented designs was gazetted and an exclusive preserve of the armed forces."
At Kanjokya street, security recovered several berets, National Resistance Movement T-shirts among other items. The raid was also extended to different parts of Kampala where police arrested several people who were either selling or participating in the sewing and branding of the T-shirts and caps.
NUP leader, Robert Kyagulanyi confirmed the raid noting that "the military, police and other security agencies laid siege on the NUP offices in Kamwokya. Several of our staff have been arrested or injured. They are breaking into the different offices, taking all documents and other valuables."
He would later also say that most of the party forms with signatures for nominations had been taken away. "They have also taken sh23m shillings, part of which was meant to facilitate our parliamentary candidates as nomination fees. They have also taken so many of our branding materials including posters, banners, berets, t-shirts, pens, notebooks, among others. Our CCTV cameras have been vandalized and taken," Kyagulanyi noted.
Kyagulanyi also stated that he had been informed that so many of their supporters who were selling NUP branded materials in Kampala had been arrested.
Police could not say how many party members had been arrested and what was recovered.
In September this year, the Army designated the red beret and tunic as official military clothing and warned whoever would be found wearing them a place in jail.
However, the opposition NUP continued daring the state by printing and selling the red beret to its members.