Police negligence over Kaweesi murder provoked me- Museveni

President Museveni has said he is now directly involved in the fight against the spate of criminality in the country since the murder of Joan Kagezi and AIGP Andrew Felix Kaweesi.

Joan Kagezi was shot dead by unknown assailants suspected to be travelling on motorcycles as she returned home in Kiwatule.

In an almost similar fashion, AIGP Kaweesi was sprayed with a number of rounds of bullets together with his bodyguard and driver as he left home in Kulambiro in March last year by unknown assailants riding on motorcycles.

Speaking during his address to the nation about the state of security in the country, Museveni said in the past he had relied on police to carry out investigations and look for criminals about various crimes committed in the country.

I had assumed that the police force full of educated people would handle crime. We recruited graduates into the police. Why should they be bothering an old man like me to go and look for criminals,”Museveni said in parliament.

He said that after the murder of Kagezi and Kaweesi, he was provoked into direction action and involvement unlike before when he relied on police to do the job.

According to Museveni, on a number of scenarios when he visited scenes of crime, he realized there were clues to the criminals but this had been neglected by police.

“Negligence and collision in aiding the cases by some security organs had affected the issue of handling crime.”

He noted, “When I intervened in the murders of women in Entebbe, new years murders in Masaka, the murder of Susan Magara and the murders in Namayingo, most of the culprits in those cases were arrested and charged.”

For the kidnap and subsequent murder of Magara, the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence(CMI) was deployed and together with police , they were able to apprehend the suspects who currently facing charges at Buganda road court.

Two weeks ago, Arua Municipality Member of Parliament, Col.Ibrahim Abiriga was shot dead by assailants who were travelling on boda bodas as he returned home in Matugga, Wakiso district.

The wave of murders involving assailants travelling on motorcycles with guns has become fashionable and a number of high profile people have lost their lives to it, prompting the public to raise concern over the ability of government to protect them and their property.

However, President Museveni said all those involved in this form of criminality would be crushed and left for dead.

“They have eyes but they can’t see, they have ears but can't listen. They are playing with something very dangerous. We shall crash them. Those who are doing bad things are endangering themselves, we shall crush them,”Museveni warned.

“It is foolish for anyone to think they can destabilise this country using weapons. We have an all-weather capacity to prevent any aggression or any terrorist campaign against us.”