
KAMPALA —The senior police leadership was on the evening of Tuesday, October 15, holding a crisis meeting in a bid to identify strategies to fight increasing cases of robbery in the city as directed by the President, PML Daily has learnt.
Senior police chiefs, including the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Maj Gen Sabiiti Muzeyi and CID Director Grace Akullo, were holed up in a meeting in a bid to beat a two-day deadline issued by President Museveni to the IGP, Martins Okoth-Ochola, to find a solution to the rising crime.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Museveni wrote on his Facebook wall that he had directed Mr Ochola, who is currently abroad on state duties, to find a solution to the robbery cases.
“I have given 2 days to Commander Sabiiti of the Police to come out with a plan to combat these gangs. The IGP is away in Peru for a meeting. I will look at that plan, comment on it and it will, then, be communicated to all of you,” the President said.
And now it has emerged that Gen Sabiiti summoned all police chiefs to discuss the directive.
Police spokesman Fred Enanga confirmed that the meeting was ongoing by press time but declined to divulge details.
However, sources close to the meeting have intimated to this website that the police chiefs were discussing the idea of strengthening community policing, which was initiated by former police Chief Kale Kayihura.
We could not independently verify the claims.
On Tuesday, the President said “it is easy to defeat these gangs. Their crimes will only add to the credit of the NRM because we are going to defeat them. Yet, the People have already seen the bankruptcy and the criminality of these groups and those who back.”
Earlier, Daily Monitor had reported that criminals, ranging from four to seven, armed with machetes, housebreaking implements and sometimes firearms attack homes and make off with home appliances, cars and money, according to various police reports.
The newspaper added that Police reports indicate that Kira, Kasangati, Bwebajja, Wakiso, Lungujja and Kajjansi are some of the areas where high cases of burglaries are reported.
Daily Monitor referred to the latest incident which was an attack on a Uganda Revenue Authority worker, Mr Crispus Mugabe, at Seeta Village in Kasangati Municipality, Wakiso District at 3:20am on Monday.
About five criminals armed with machetes and housebreaking implements raided his home and stole laptops, mobile phones, appliances, UGX2 million and his vehicle before they fled.