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Masked goons: Junior officer to probe his boss
Plain-clothed masked men near a police officer on Tuesday. Police officers looked on as the masked goons unleashed terror on civilians. File Photo.
What you need to know:
Inverted. ASP Benon Ayebare will investigate his senior, Superintendent Godfrey Tayebwa
Kampala.
A preliminary inquiry file into the beating up of supporters of Dr Kizza Besigye by masked goons suspected to be from the police has been sent to the regional police command office for further investigation. The aim is to establish why some police commanders looked on as the hooded attackers unleashed terror on civilians last Tuesday.
Plain-clothed masked men used iron bars and electric wires to beat up Dr Besigye’s supporters as he was going for prayers at Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party headquarters at Najjanankumbi on Entebbe Road.
However, what appears strange in the probe is that the head of police criminal investigations in Kampala Metropolitan Police, Detective Senior Superintendent of Police, Godwin Tumugumye, sent the file to Detective Assistant Superintendent of Police, Benon Ayebare, the head of criminal investigations at Kampala Metropolitan Police South Region, to investigate the implicated officers who were seen in company of the masked goons. Among them is the Kampala Metropolitan Police South deputy regional commander, Superintendent Godfrey Tayebwa.
SP Tayebwa is not only superior in rank to ASP Ayebare, but he is also his supervisor at the region, which makes the investigation strange and complex.
Mr Patrick Onyango, the spokesman of Kampala Metropolitan Police, confirmed the transfer of the file to a junior officer for an investigation against his senior.
“It is true the file has been sent to the KMP South. It will be handed by Mr Ayebare since the issues being investigated happened in Kampala Metropolitan Police South Region,” Mr Onyango said Thursday.
On Wednesday, Kampala Metropolitan Police commander, Mr Abbas Byakagaba, ordered Mr Tumugumye to investigate the incidents.
Mr Byakagaba promised that the investigation would not focus on his officers who looked on as masked goons beat up people. Police have since disowned the masked men. The police dismissed the call for Police Professional Standards Unit to investigate the incidents, saying the agency only handles cases of indiscipline against officers, and the masked men aren’t their staff.
However, the overall police spokesperson, Mr Fred Enanga, said although Mr Ayebare is supervised by Mr Tayebwa on policy issues, he can ably investigate the case since both have different reporting structures.
“KMP South CID commander reporting structure reaches the directorate of CID, which is independent from Operations directorate. I see no problem with that,” Mr Enanga said yesterday.
Several human rights activists and Opposition leaders have doubted positive outcomes of the police investigations into the masked men.
Mr Ladislaus Rwakafuzi, a human rights advocate, said actions of the masked men are criminal and failure to slap criminal charges against them is tantamount to impunity.
Not Isolated
This isn’t the first time plain-clothed men armed with clubs have attacked civilians without any police intervention. The first group emerged from Central Police Station Kampala during the protest against proposed giveaway of part of Mabira Forest to investors to in 2007. Police then denied knowledge of the stick-wielding goons. On June 9, 2010, a similar group attacked Dr Besigye and his supporters at Clock Tower Grounds as police looked on, prompting protests from human rights activists.
The police chief, Gen Kale Kayihura, ordered Mr Martin Okoth Ochola, the then director of Special Duties to investigate the group.
However, none of the officers has ever been held responsible.
