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Uganda president fires police chief, security minister
Uganda president fires police chief, security minister

Uganda president fires police chief, security minister

AFP
Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has fired controversial police chief Kale Kayihura as well as the country's security minister, a statement said Sunday.

Kayihura, a serving general, was once regarded as the most powerful military officer in the country but has recently fallen out of favour with Museveni who has ruled Uganda since he took power at the head of a rebel army in 1986.

Kayihura was appointed inspector general of police in 2005, the same year that a successful referendum was held on restoring multi-party democracy to the East African nation after a near 20-year ban on political parties.

His tenure as police chief was characterised by the proliferation of military-style units in the force and an increase in the perceived politicalisation of the police.

Since the March 2017 assassination of Felix Kaweesi - a senior policeman who had been viewed as his potential successor - Kayihura has come under pressure for failing to curb growing insecurity. At least 23 women have been killed in unsolved murders around the capital, there has been a spate of deaths of foreign nationals and last week a woman from an influential family was killed after being held captive for three-weeks by kidnappers demanding a huge ransom.

The rising insecurity further discredited a police force widely viewed by the public to be incompetent and corrupt.

In the aftermath of Kaweesi's assassination - which remains unsolved - Museveni said “criminals have infiltrated the police” and ordered Kayihura to “clean the police.”

Nevertheless, in May 2017 Kayihura's contract was renewed.

Since then a rival security body - the Internal Security Organisation (ISO) - has made several high profile arrests of senior policemen viewed as being close to Kayihura who are accused of corruption and torture as well as gangsters who have admitted working with the police.

Some Ugandans have accused Kayihura of being too close to President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and there have been unsubstantiated accusations in the tabloid press that the pair have secretly plotted to overthrow Museveni.

In the same statement Museveni fired the minister in charge of ISO -- Henry Tumukunde - who has been openly critical of police failings.

Tumukunde and Kayihura have been engaged in a public tussle for over 15 years. Both men are veterans of the “Liberation War” which brought Museveni to power

Tumukunde had previously fallen out with Museveni when, in 2003, he had opposed the removed of term limits. In 2005 he was forced to resign as an MP representing the army and was arrested.

The man in command of the soldiers who arrested him was Kayihura.

By 2016 Tumukunde was rehabilitated and Museveni appointed him security minister.

Okoth Ochola will replace Kayihura as Inspector General of Police and General Elly Tumwiine has been appointed security minister, according to the statement.



NAMPA/AFP

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Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 225.05/OZ UP +1.57% | Copper US$ 3.99/lb UP +0.09% | Zinc US$ 2 453.40/T DOWN -0.13% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.37/BBP UP +1.14% | Platinum US$ 908.10/OZ UP +1.48% Sport results: Weather: Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 23.87 | EUR to NAD 20.43 | CNY to NAD 2.62 | USD to NAD 18.92 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.93 | USD to ZMW 25.01 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - 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