By Executive Editor
The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces – UPDF – has described it as mere allegation reports that Private Wilson Sabiti, who shot dead the Minister of State for Labour, Col Rtd Charles Okello Engola Tuesday morning had a case of indiscipline.
Both Daily Monitor and New Vision carried Sabiti’s indiscipline story reportedly from the time he was guarding NRM National Vice Chairperson – Eastern – Capt. Mike Mukula.
Kampala Gazette Executive Editor put these questions to Deputy Defence Spokesperson, Col. Deo Akiiki.
Question: Media reports indicate that Private Sabiti had a history of being indiscipline from the time he was guarding Capt. Mike Mukula.
Answer: Ask Capt. Mukula. If he was indisciplined, it was incumbent upon him (Mukula) to write to whoever gave him the soldier to make a report that actually you gave me a soldier but he was indiscipline. If he did not give such a report, how would the commanders have known of his indiscipline? If he was indisciplined he could not have ended up with the Minister.
Question: Who assigns guards (Military Guards) to VIPs?
Answer: We have ( in the UPDF) what we call the UPDF Guard Unit, a specialized unit that provides guards to all of us.
Question: Who is entitled to these guards?
Answer: Not everybody is assigned guards. Engola (RIP) is a special case. Engola was the Minister of Defence in Charge of General Duties, and was a retired Colonel. So, in that regard, he was more comfortable with military escorts. It is not a must that everybody has to get military escorts.
Last evening, Col. Akiiki responded to the issue of non-pay to Private Sabiti. A Twitterer, Sarah Bireete had brought up the matter.
However, Col. Akiiki said: ”With Due respect Sarah, you know we are the ones paid before anybody else and the system does not segregate.”
”I have accessed even the payslips of this very soldier for the last one year. No day he missed a pay. He actually has other entitlements being an escort if the Minister,” Col. Akiiki said.
