Bamugemereire, and not her bullies, should have been awarded a medal

Last weekend, President Museveni presided over the national Heroes’ Day celebrations held at Kasanje Town Council, Wakiso District.
During the medal award ceremony, the public was surprised to see ‘meritorious’ medals being given to four soldiers that blocked members of the Catherine Bamugemereire-led Commission of Inquiry into Land Matters from accessing a piece of land in Mutungo, Kampala.

The site visit was to establish ownership of plots 67, 48, 29 and 59 in Block 237 where the External Security Organisation (ESO) reportedly plans to build its headquarters. While denning Lady Justice Bamugemereire and her team entry to inspect the land in dispute, several Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers under Sgt Julius Katuriba were seen ready to fire shots at the land enquiry team.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, meritorious means praise for commendable, courageous and selflessness acts.

For UPDF soldiers, admirable and disciplined acts are expected at all time in line with their mandate, according to the 1995 Constitution under Articles 208 and 209. The stipulated functions are to defend and protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Uganda, ensure the respect of peoples’ rights, ensure the rule of law and good governance.
According to James Wright, a former US marine and historian, medals are supposed to be awarded to soldiers in recognition of meritorious actions. He cites the example of the 472 medals given to soldiers during World War II for assault on enemy positions. In Vietnam, 260 soldiers were recognised with the nation’s highest medal for their involvement in offensive actions against the enemy.
In Afghanistan, 50 per cent of medals awarded to soldiers were in recognition of meritorious acts; putting their lives at risk to save comrades. An example was Cpl Dokata Meyers who was awarded a meritorious medal for continuously running into enemy zones to save the lives of 36 marines and soldiers.

The international practice in awarding meritorious medals to soldiers seems to be for protecting life, not threatening human life.
Therefore, it was worrying to see four UPDF soldiers that threatened to use their firearms on Lady Justice Bamugemereire being awarded meritorious medals by the commander-in-chief on Heroes’ Day.
There seems to be a trend emerging where acts of violence against civilians merit medals. In 2017, a UPDF officer was awarded a medal under unclear circumstances. This was the Rwenzori Star medal, the third highest decoration awarded for distinguished military service.
And yet just six months earlier, the palace of the Rwenzururu Kingdom had been attacked and more than 100 people were killed under the command of this officer.

According to Section 5 of the National Honours, Awards Act, 2001, the Presidential Awards Committee is supposed to advise the President in respect of persons upon whom titles of honour may be conferred.
One, therefore, wonders if the ruling party is at war with itself. Could some people be intentionally giving irrational advice of rewarding aggression and violence with medals in order to make NRM unpopular?

Justice Bamugemereire’s work with the land commission is popular among ordinary Ugandans for confronting land grabbers and corrupt elite. The NRM chairman had, therefore, gained political mileage for his efforts in setting up the land commission.
However, the misguided advice of rewarding the UPDF soldiers for threatening Bamugemereire’s team may have far reaching consequences in 2021.