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UPDF soldiers clean up Lira City ahead of Tarehe Sita

UPDF soldiers and police officers clean Lira City on February 4, 2025 ahead of the annual Tarehe Sita celebrations. PHOTO/CHARITY AKULLO

What you need to know:

  • Tarehe Sita, is a Kiswahili word meaning the sixth day and it is commemorated annually on February 6. 
  • The 44th Tarehe Sita will be celebrated this week. 

Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) soldiers and police throughout Tuesday cleaned up Lira City in Northern Uganda ahead of the annual Tarehe Sita celebrations.

In collaboration with civilians, the national army removed waste from several areas in Lira Town.

UPDF soldiers attached to the 5th Division Infantry headquarters in Acol-Pii, Pader District, are also expected to clean up Pader, Kitgum, Patongo and Abim town councils on Wednesday.

Col David Opeero, the deputy 5th Division Infantry commander, said “the exercise aimed at fostering hope and solidarity in northern Uganda which is recovering from the two-decade insurgency.”

“The security that has been ushered in provides an environment for economic activities. People are doing various forms of businesses such as farming, general merchandise, transport, and security makes it possible because business entails moving from one point to the other,” Col Opeero told Monitor on Tuesday.

“Few years ago, our people had been living in camps, but security was restored, and people are now back home. Some people volunteered to see this security coming in. It has brought in the spirit of Pan-Africanism,” he observed.

Tarehe Sita, a Kiswahili word meaning the sixth day, commemorates the February 6, 1981, when the five-year guerilla war that brought President Museveni to power was launched, with an attack on Kabamba Military Barracks.

The National Resistance Army’s assault marked the beginning of an armed rebellion that eventually toppled Milton Obote’s government.

According to UPDF’s 5th Division Infantry Public Information Officer Capt Edrin Mawanda, Tarehe Sita “is a day of great historical importance for Uganda.”

“What I want to advise our people of Lira is to maintain the cleanliness because we have found out that most of these drainage systems are filled up with garbage. Let’s maintain cleanness because as you are aware, we have an outbreak of Ebola and some other epidemics,” he added.