Idi Amin’s son relives his father’s years at the helm

When Idi Amin was not confronting neighbouring countries and dealing with internal problems, he took time off to
attend social functions.

In essence, the people making the allegations suggest that dad, Butabika and dad’s other senior officers were
duped into attacking Tanzania under false pretenses and on false information that was given deliberately so that
they could attack Tanzania and start a war.

In addition, the same saboteurs and subversive elements allegedly went on to commit the most gruesome atrocities.
Some cynics have boldly stated that: “The widespread looting, murder and destruction in the border towns of
Tanzania that followed the clashes between Tanzanian and Ugandan soldiers and the attacks by Uganda on Tanzania
were committed by the same saboteurs and subversive elements that operated within Uganda and murdered innocent
Ugandans throughout Idi Amin’s rule.

They did this to continue to tarnish Idi Amin’s reputation and make him look like a maniacal murderer. They are
cold hearted killers who were only interested in achieving their own agendas.”

Needless to say, the horrific atrocities committed against innocent Tanzanian civilians provoked Nyerere and his
government to declare war on dad. These atrocities indeed pushed Tanzania to the limit and necessitated the
country’s military to defend its innocent citizens against murders and other atrocities allegedly committed by
others and not dad’s soldiers.

Moreover, powerful governments around the world had allegedly gone along with the propaganda that was ongoing
against dad and fully supported Tanzania and the exiles in their bid to overthrow dad’s government.
Well, in response to the “careless blunder” by Butabika, a force comprising Tanzanians, Ugandan exiles and
mercenaries launched an attack on Mutukula.

They were determined to overthrow dad’s government and the Ugandan exiles were about to realize the objectives of
the meeting they held in 1976 in Lusaka, Zambia to lay a more systematic strategy for overthrowing dad. Uganda
and Tanzania were now entangled in an all-out war. The casualties would be many and the damage immeasurable!

Meanwhile, roughly 10,000-15,000 mainly young Uganda Army recruits passed out at Ngoma, northwest of Bombo and
prepared to fight the guerrillas. Having recently obtained armaments from the Soviet Union, Tanzania was more
than prepared for the war against dad and angry and determined enough to want to not only drive the so-called
invaders out of Tanzanian territory but to overthrow dad.

Launching counter-attack
So in November 1978, Tanzania launched a counter-attack on Uganda and on December 9, 1978, the country’s
President Julius Nyerere announced that the Tanzanian army had had a victory. He told Tanzanians that dad’s
soldiers had been driven out of Tanzanian soil.

Yet this was not true. Apparently after the attack sanctioned by dad and the announcement that his government had
annexed the Kagera Salient, nations from the OIC (Organisation of the Islamic Conference) convinced him to
withdraw back to the original borders that existed when each country achieved “Independence.”

Dad had done that but Tanzania attacked Uganda in retaliation nonetheless. Dad’s soldiers were not driven from
Tanzania as has always been reported. They had withdrawn from the Kagera Salient when Tanzania attacked Uganda.

-Continues in Sunday Monitor