Minister tells police to polish its image
Speaking out. The Internal Affairs minister, Gen Jeje Odongo engages the Inspector General of Police, Gen Kale Kayihura, during a two-day police council meeting at the Marine Base in Kigo, Wakiso District yesterday. PHOTO BY JOSEPH KATO
What you need to know:
- Police have a Shs33.9b electricity debt, Shs31b for feeding during field operations, water bills worth Shs15.8b, Shs15.1b for fuel, oils and lubricants and Shs5.8b for vehicle maintenance. It also has Shs4b debt of rent for police units, Shs3.1b for uniforms, Shs4b for Amisom payment and Shs1b for Insurance.
The Internal Affairs minister, Gen Jeje Odongo, has asked the Uganda Police Force to check itself on why it is losing popularity among citizens.
Gen Odongo was responding to the Inspector General of Police, Gen Kale Kayihura, who in his opening remarks said police was under attack by people he referred to as propagandists.
“Honourable minister I want to tell you that this police council meeting has come at the time when our image has been attacked by propagandists. Every day you read stories, police has done this, police has done that as if there is nothing good police does in this country,” Gen Kayihura said.
Police council meeting
Gen Odongo who was the chief guest at the two-day police council meeting at the Marine Base in Kigo, Wakiso District and whose ministry oversees the police institution, said the force needs to check itself on why it is being cited in only negative stories.
“It is true that in the recent past almost every negative story is about the police. We need to ask ourselves why we are only being cited and the address issues,” he said.
The minister also asked Gen Kayihura to explain the status of crime preventers, who he said were a force apparently without streamlined operation procedures.
The police council last sat in 2015 and it is during such meetings that decisions of how to penalise errant senior officers at the rank of Assistant Commissioner and above who have been implicated in service offences such as extortion, bribery, corruption, unlawful arrests and excessive use of authority, among others are made.
Loop holes
Gen Kayihura noted that this year’s sitting would among other things deliberate on rectifying loopholes in police command.
Recently senior officers incuding Kampala South regional police commander, Siraje Bakaleke, former professional standards unit commander Joel Aguma and former Special Operation Unit commander Nixon Agasirwe have been implicated in extortion and unlawful arrests of refugees.
The IGP also asked Gen Odongo to persuade government to write off a Shs125 billion debt, which was accumulated to purchase new police fleet and cater for emergencies.
The minister promised to engage Finance ministry over the matter.
He, however, noted that a lot of police money was spent on unplanned for events which he did not mention.
Police Debts
Police have a Shs33.9b electricity debt, Shs31b for feeding during field operations, water bills worth Shs15.8b, Shs15.1b for fuel, oils and lubricants and Shs5.8b for vehicle maintenance. It also has Shs4b debt of rent for police units, Shs3.1b for uniforms, Shs4b for Amisom payment and Shs1b for Insurance.
