Gen Kayihura taken to General Court Martial

Gen Kale Kayihura, the former Inspector General of Police, who has been in military detention is about to appear before a General Court Martial sitting at Makindye.

Since June 13, Gen Kayihura has been confined to a two-bedroom apartment house in the Military Police Barracks at Makindye, a suburb of Kampala City.

Military police have heavily deployed inside and outside court. Dozens of relative and friends have taken their seats as they wait for court to convene.

Gen Andrew Gutti, the chairman of the court, who will preside over the proceedings, is yet to arrive at the court.

During his tenure as police chief, the number of police officers rose from 15,000 to 50,000. He made stopping Dr Besigye’s quest for power his pet project, breaking up the gatherings of the Opposition chief and overseeing his arrest several times.

Towards the end of his tenure, the police office seemed to go a bit out of control, with President Yoweri Museveni accusing the Force of being infiltrated by criminals and eventually ordering the army to arrest a number of senior police officers and other Gen Kayihura’s associates, which ended with the arrest of Gen Kayihura himself.

By that time, crime seemed to spiral around the country, with killings, including of high profile citizens, and robberies being rampant.