On the 16th Of June, 2023, a small group of about 10 or less people, attacked Nyabugaando Secondary
School, a private school near Lubiriha River. The names of the places are Kikoonjo version of the bigger Runyakitara language (Runyankore, Rukiga, Lunyaambo, Runyoro, Lutooro, Rujiinja, Ruhaya, Luluuri, etc). Nyabugaando refers to the thorny, nitrogen fixing plants known as obugaando (acacia hohii). That is why you hear, throughout the Great Lakes area, place names like Rugaando in Rwampaara; Kigaando, in Butambala, Mpigi; Kigaando in Karagwe, Tanzania; etc. Lubiriha, would be Rubira, with the voice going down over the “i”, meaning bubbling or boiling from the verb Kubira (to reach boiling point for water). At this Nyabugaando School, the small group of terrorists, using machetes, club and fire, killed 37children. This was most tragic and, as usual, despisable and condemnable. Why? It is because you
cannot be called a fighter for any good cause, when you attack unarmed people.
2 Moreover, in this case children; you are a criminal, a terrorist and never to be called a fighter. If you want to be a fighter, you attack a barracks, a Police Post or you ambush troops or security personnel on the move. In that case, you are still illegal, you are committing treason, but you are not a war criminal.
ADF, attacking Nyabugaando School children, does not show ADF getting stronger. It, actually, shows that the ADF was defeated long ago. By the time they committed the atrocities of Kiburara Seminary and Kichwaamba Technical School (on 16th August, 1997 and 8th June, 1998 respectively), they were already
defeated. It meant, then and it means now, that they could not attack anybody armed with a gun. The only one they can attack, is the un-armed one. That is weakness, not strength.
When the ADF launched their first attack on Mpondwe on the 13th of November, 1996, fully supported and armed with guns by Mobutu and Bashir, 1200 of them, their aim was to capture Mpondwe, which they did for a few days; proceed and capture Kasese Air-strip, so that Bashir lands weapons for them and, then, in Co-ordination with Kony in the North, would proceed to Kampala and overthrow the NRM Government. The attack on Mpondwe, was to tackle us from the rear and give us a final blow.What happened? The ADF was blocked by the small forces near Mpondwe and contained there.
3 After a few days, a massive counter-attack was launched by the UPDF. 400ADFs were killed and the
whole group was dispersed. They now shifted to, mainly, rural terrorism, targeting unarmed Civilians,
again. I can only remember a few cases where they attacked detaches of UPDF. We had to, therefore,
build the anti-terrorism capacity. This meant 4 targets: stop them from capturing power; stop them
from controlling any part of Uganda; stop them from interfering with human settlements in the rural areas and the economic activities of the people (in other words, enable the IDPs to go back to their homes); and stop them from committing atrocities in Uganda like the one of Nyabugaando.
4 By 2007, all these four had been achieved. The last desperate effort was in 2007, when 100 of them entered Uganda from Congo and 87 of them were killed by the Commandoes in Semuliki National Park.
They had come to sabotage the Common wealth meeting of that year by committing terrorist atrocities
that would scare delegates from coming. Since that time, they could no longer send groups into Uganda.
They now tried to concentrate on individuals that would plant bombs. They planted a total of 34 bombs.
We, however, eliminated all those bombing efforts by arresting or killing all those involved within Uganda.
The ADF now remained in Congo. This is where the anti-NRM foreign agents based in the Monitor paper,
become a comic group. When the incident like the one of Nyabugaando, unfortunately, occurs, they come up: “security in Uganda has collapsed”, etc. Is their plan to shift Uganda out of the Great Lakes region and put it where in the World?
5 We could not shift Uganda and we fortified here by having a strong Army and intelligence service. The
question is: “How do you ensure total security in the continent of Africa where colonialism ensured
excessive political balkanization?” If you have the right ideological orientation, you do what the NRM
has done in Uganda by ensuring the following:
(i). A strong Army that can fight any type of war;
(ii). A strong intelligence service that uses both human and technical means to detect and locate
the enemies within the borders of Uganda and, in some cases, outside Uganda;
(iii). Maximum political cohesion within the Country based on broad-based legitimate interests of the
people; and
(iv). Pan-African efforts to work with sister African Countries on matters of common interest such
as trade, etc., including security.
This is how the NRM has turned Uganda into an Island of peace in the region where Uganda is not
generating refugees and is, instead, receiving the highest number of refugees in Africa and No.3 in the
whole World. There are now 1.53million refugees in Uganda.
6 By relying on a strong Army, a reasonably strong intelligence service and maximum political cohesion possible, the NRM has been able to keep the ADF away from Uganda ever since their defeat in Semuliki
Valley in 2007. However, the ADF were there in Congo. Although their growth is not dramatic, but the
Congo Government of H.E Kabila, supported by some regional and international actors, gave them free tenancy in North Kivu and Ituri. They were mining gold, selling timber, harvesting people’s Cocoa,
collecting taxes, extorting money from people, etc.
They were modestly growing and with money. They also developed linkages with other terrorists like al-
Quida.
However, all this does not mean much for NRM-UPDF. We will always defeat any anti-Uganda terrorist group given the right conditions. In spite of the modest growth and the free territory the Kabila Government gave them, they could not enter Uganda in force- section, platoon, company, etc. – at all and could infiltrate individuals with a lot of difficulty.
7 Should we and can we close the border with Congo like the Israelis built a wall between Israel and Palestine? Who would lose most, apart from the issue of cost for the wall? Uganda earns USD 606.32million per year by exporting to Congo. All this would be lost.
Besides, we would harm and annoy our people and the Congolese people that live on the borders. These are the same people: Bakoonjo – Banaande; Banyoro- Batooro-Batuku-Bahema-Banyambooga; Alurs;
Lugbara; Lendu; Kakwa; the Kinyarwaanda speakers; etc.
Recently, at Kyankwanzi, I met a delegation of congolese MPs. To solve the problem of translation since I did not have a French speaker on my side, I spoke in Runyoro – Rutooro and the Hon. Tibasiima Ateeenyi, MP for one of the constituencies in Ituri, translated to the others. There was also an MP from
Mahagi who is an Alur speaker with whom I exchanged: Nedi, afwoyo, afwoyo bino, etc. With Dr. Omona, they continued blasting off in Luo. These are the people that we would close off if we tried to physically seal the border. Cut off the toe because it has been invaded by Jigga. No; the NRM patiently
removes the jigga and preserves the toe.
8 Therefore, closing the borders, building walls is out.
The only ways are: to crush the ADF (kuhuura like you thresh millet), kutokoora (like you remove something that has fallen in your tea), kuraaza (to know where the animal you are hunting is) and
kutooza (to follow the track of an animal).
Fortunately, with the coming of H.E Felix Tshisekedi to power, he was more co-operative. He allowed us,
since the 31st of November, 2021, to kuhuura (thresh)
ADF. It had good results because the ADF had foolishly gathered in big camps, confident that they
were invulnerable and no force could reach them.