Kitgum police boss beaten for slapping traffic officer in Lira

Kitgum District Police Commander (DPC) Suwed Manshur was beaten in Lira City after he allegedly slapped a traffic officer.

A scuffle ensued when Mr Manshur allegedly resisted arrest for flouting a new traffic policy which requires all motorcyclists to wear a helmet and a reflector jacket.

Eyewitnesses of the Monday incident faulted Mr Manshur for resisting arrest at Kakonge corner on Juba Road after a traffic officer accused him of disregarding the new policy. 

“He was stopped by traffic police officers, Field Force Unit officers and leaders of Lira City Boda boda Association who were helping the police to enforce the new guidelines,” an eyewitness who preferred anonymity told Monitor. 

He added: “When asked why he was not following the traffic guidelines, the DPC became so aggressive and slapped a police traffic officer who was heading the operation. The victim then fell down.”

In retaliation, another eyewitness Francis Ogema Awany says, the boda boda operators who were with the enforcement agencies slapped the DPC.

“The DPC fell on the tarmac. But since the community members knew him as a police officer who once worked in Lira as the police spokesperson for North Kyoga, they came to his rescue,” Mr Ogema told this publication on Monday evening.

But the chairman of Lira City Boda Boda Association Sam Odongo Tuesday morning denied allegations that his members beat up the DPC. 

According to him, it was an armed police CID detective in civilian attire who stopped Mr Manshur and questioned him regarding why he was not abiding by the policy.

"But Manshur became aggressive and started questioning them if they knew who he was. Following the argument, a traffic police officer who was heading the operation attempted to remove the ignition key from Manshur’s motorcycle but he slapped the police officer who fell on the ground,” he narrated.

"So, after seeing that their boss had been attacked, the armed police officers from the Field Force Unit came to his rescue and beat the DPC properly. There was gunfire exchange in the process,” he added.

The Kitgum DPC told this reporter that the police leadership was already sorting out the issue.

But the North Kyoga regional police traffic officer Mathias Okwir Mulumba blamed the DPC “for being unprofessional.”

"How can he slap a police officer in uniform on duty? We condemn such acts," he said.

Mr Patrick Jimmy Okema, the North Kyoga regional police spokesperson, said he was informed about the ugly incident but was still waiting for details from the territorial police commanders.