The Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) has insisted that all presidential candidates will be guarded by Special Forces Command-SFC which is an elite force that protects the President, members of first family, key government officials and key installations.
UPDF insistence defies the Electoral Commission (EC) on providing security to the presidential candidates who will be nominated on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. The EC through its Spokesperson, Julius Mucunguzi, said all successfully nominated presidential candidates will leave the venue with police patrol vehicle loaded with armed police personnel for their security throughout the campaign period.
However, UPDF through Maj Gen Felix Kulayigye, who is the Defence Public Information Officer (DPIO) said presidential candidates are Very Important Persons (VIPs) who will be guarded by the Special Forces Command (SFC).
It was the Chief of Defence Forces-CDF Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who first announced on July 21, this year that all presidential candidates will be guarded by SFC. SFC is an elite force known for guarding President Yoweri Museveni, members of the first family, and other key installations.
“I have said it once and for all, ALL Presidential Candidates will be guarded ONLY by SFC! Any personal arrangements that do not concur with our standard operating procedures (SOPs) will be smashed immediately,” Gen Muhoozi said on his X formerly twitter account.
All the previous elections including the most chaotic of 2020/2021 which left 54 people shot dead, presidential candidates were guarded by police’s Very Important Persons Protections Unit (VVIPU) which is under the directorate of Counter-Terrorism (CT) currently headed by AIGP David Wasswa.
It remains unclear whether EC and UPDF will reach consensus on who takes lead in guarding presidential candidates. So far, NRM’s candidate Gen Yoweri Museveni who has been in power since 1986, FDC’s Nathan Nandala Mafabi, NUP’s Robert Ssentamu Kyagulanyi, DP’s Nobert Mao, ANT’s Gregory Mugisha Muntu are some of the prominent politicians who have returned the presidential nomination forms.
Mucunguzi explained that EC is ready to cater for all the expenses for the security detail that will be provided to presidential candidates. However, the SFC which UPDF insists must guard presidential candidates has been severally accused by NUP of participating in the abductions of its supporters.
The CDF Gen Muhoozi has on several occasions posted on his X account boasting on how some NUP members such as Edward Ssebuwufu aka Eddy Mutwe were in his basement being taught Runyankore by SFC.