Kayihura's Police was a captive force

CROOKED POLICE

Now that tables are turning on Gen Kale Kayihura, I  see social media posts praising the notorious Kayihura's Police as professional. Such considerations are for the deluded, and perhaps those strange to professionalism, them being crooks or duplicitous. 

The circumstances under which Gen. Kale Kayihura operates are understandably crafty and murky – a crooked political and legal environment. The laws of a country are the laws enacted by the ruling class, to secure their social, economic and political interests; and to maintain status quo - dominance.

The Police's performance under such a regime is defined by the nature of the political actors in power, and their inherent interests. When the regime is crooked and repressive, the Police will also enforce their crooked and repressive laws.

The Police is an instrument of power.

To evaluate the performance of the Kayihura's Police as professional or unprofessional, one needs to analyse the crookedness of political actors in power. In these lights, the Police has been quite predictable, and a reflection of the dishonesty of the dominant political actors.

This force was effective in assuming the political responsibility of protecting the Museveni regime in power. The Police even revised the purpose of its founding under the advent of colonialism. That is, to protect the colonial establishment and its imperial agenda.

This Police is exceptional in its' mission of protecting the Museveni establishment and Museveni's "imperial" agenda.

Gen. Kale Kayihura is member of the political and ruling class. He has to share the spoils of their time by serving a function, however diabolical it is to the people's aspirations. In that line, the Police, as political tool is overly militarised, politicised, and effectively repressive.

Since the regime in power is also crooked, it enacts laws that undermines fundamental liberties - the enjoyment of unalienable rights. The Police must act to constrain Ugandans that way, by controlling all avenues of mobility – freezing Ugandans into their throats and spots. Duct-taped and immobilised.

Ugandans cannot talk, associate or move freely without Police sanctions.

Our phones are tapped, private conversations are recorded, media outlets are switched off air the moment its panellists disagree with status quo, persons are jailed for airing anti-establishment views.

When your rights to associate must be permitted by Police, then you are in police custody – jail. The Police is an effective instrument of repression in this manner.

In essence, any semblance of a civil force withered with the departure of Gen. Wamala. Gen Kayihura brooded a militant political police in the realms of Nazi's Gestapo.

It is a little wonder that the Inspector General of the Police acts as the de facto Political Commissar of the ruling Party. This Police is a captive force, serving a rogue regime.

Few proposals for immediate revamp, post-Musevenism.

First, I propose that the Police recruitment and administration be decentralised such that each district administers its own Police department, suitable to its size and local purposes.

Second, the functionality of continued quality assurance, integrity and training be left to a small highly specialised National Police at a Directorate, or the National Police Bureau, under a suitable Ministry. In addition, this crème de la crème force should handle intelligence and superintends over investigations of complex cases as well as coordination or regional and international policing matters.

Third, each district or amalgamated policing region should be mandated to promote its exemplary officers to the highest possible ranking of IGP, so that there shall be National Conferences of IGPs that discusses, examines, and harmonises crime reduction and other policing matters.

Under this Museveni regime, the political circumstances that the Police and other security organs must operate, discourages professionalism. There is nothing professional in undermining the constitution, extorting,exploiting or torturing Ugandans.

To set the police free, we must first remove this regime.

End.