The inspector General of Police Maj. Gen. Kale Kayihura has explained to our informers why the police blocked the walk to work demonstrations that was planned to start on Monday October 17th this year.
Kayihura says that the organisers of walk to work campaigns (A4C) in the first case did not comply with the 1995 Constitution of the Republic ofUganda. Kayihura says the police received solid intelligence evidence that the walk to work protests was designed to start on a peaceful note but later turn violent and cause bodily harm on the people who would have shunned the campaign.
The inspector general further says that the coordinator of walk to work protests Masaka Municipality MP Mathias Mpuuga notified the Police late “considering the time required to prepare for such an event,” and that Mpuuga had concealed the A4C programme.
Kayihura says that the concealment of the A4C agenda meant that the organisers of walk to work protests had ill intentions. Kayihura says that the Uganda Police under Article 212 has a duty to protect life and property, ensure law and order, prevent and detect crime.
Kayihura also says that the police drew lessons from previous experiences of the walk-to-work demonstrations which ended up in violent riots where roads were blocked, cars stoned and other property damaged as well as loss of lives.
The police boss further says that the organisers of walk to work protests did not indicate the specific location and times of their intended protests, in addition to obtaining clearance from the custodian of the premises they intended to use for their event.
The organisers of walk to work protests had given police the location of their protests as ‘countrywide’, which made it impractical for Police to secure their activities, and they did not confirm whether the custodian of Kololo Airstrip (Office of the President) had cleared them to use the grounds for the A4C rally on 22nd October, 2011.
By Walakira Nyanzi