Deceased senior journalist Risdel Kasasira has been laid to rest and also colleagues including Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) have eulogized him.
UPDF has revealed that it will honour deceased journalist Risdel Kasasira, by documenting his Somalia stories in a book about the Army’s operations since 2007.
UPDF has been in Somalia for nearly 20 years but Kasasira who died in a traffic accident on Friday last week was among the many journalists who have written numerous outstanding stories about highs and lows of Uganda’s military under AMISOM and ATMIS.
In 2017, Kasasira wrote series in the Daily Monitor newspaper reviewing the successes and failures of the 10 years UPDF deployment under AMISOM. While speaking at Kasasira’s burial on Sunday at Rubaya village, Ruburara parish, Kashari Sub-county, in Mbarara District, Col Allan Kitanda, said UPDF recognizes the immense journalistic work Kasasira did and for that reason he was being regarded as a Corporal.
“Kasasira might not have won the UPDF uniform but he contributed a lot by telling those stories of our operations in Somalia. He was always one of the journalists who wrote stories as they were which is not very common among journalists. We have many journalists who prioritise sensationalism over facts but that was not Kasasira,” Col Kitanda said.
UPDF first went to Somalia in 2007 under African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) but after some UN Member Security Council countries reducing funding for overstaying, it was changed to African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS). ATMIS is now being changed to African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) starting with February this year.
In writing the book detailing UPDF operations in Somalia, Col Kitanda said they will also utilise services of journalists who have been at the frontline as the combatants faced off with Al-Shabaab terrorists.
“When we had just deployed in Somalia, it was a very tough situation and we needed journalists who could withstand such a challenge. We had to carefully select the journalists and we gave them the befitting preparations. I told Kasasira that if you raise your head when the gun sound goes silent, I will hit your head with the butt of the gun. He told me Afande do it to protect me and we eventually laughed over it,” Col Kitanda said.
Kasasira, who worked for Daily Monitor newspaper for nearly 20 years perished in a traffic accident on Friday last week in Lyantonde district on his way to Kampala. He was in a co-driver’s seat as his wife Charlotte Nshimire was chauffeuring the killer Toyota Corola Fielder UBK 851Y.
Although Kasasira perished in a road crash, his wife Nshimire and their two children Aretha Antone aged five and Elerio Nowangye aged three survived with minor injuries. During his send off, journalists, friends outside the media, and his former classmates eulogized him as a person who paid attention to detail, never showed off because of being associated to powerful individuals and he created friendship with both the young, age mates and people older than him.
Rachael Mabala, a former photojournalists at Daily Monitor, said Kasasira was a person who could give you a nickname just for friendship and would often call you to find out whether you’re will.
In the last three days of his death, Kasasira called very many people wishing them a Happy New Year and even promised to meet them for coffee in order to celebrate passing through 2024 and discuss the future development prospects. At the burial Col Raphael Magyezi, represented the message of the Chief of Defence Forces –CDF Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba who described him as a friendly and committed person.
Charles Mwanguhya, a TV journalist, said Kasasira faced very many challenges especially working for Daily Monitor, a newspaper the President has often described as serving the government enemies.
“Imagine Kasasira chose journalism and working for Daily Monitor, a newspaper described as an enemy of the state by the President. Imagine you have your relatives, or friends serving in the government you write about in an enemy paper and you choose to stick to journalism principles,” Mwanguhya said.