Minister of State for Defence and Veteran Affairs, Bright Rwamirama has announced that the UPDF will take crime preventers into re-training to choose those fit to join the army
The development comes after President Yoweri Museveni recently moved the group from police management to UPDF.
But during an interface with officials from the Ministry of Defence who were presenting their budget estimates for financial year 2018/2019, Members of Parliament tasked the army to explain the legal basis and sustainability of crime preventers in the Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF).
An angry Theodore Ssekikubo, Lwemiyaga MP questioned the legality of President Museveni's gesture, noting that there are clear ways for one to be called a member of the reserve force and that making a directive is not one of them. Ssekikubo tasked the Minister Rwamirama, to specify under which law the crime preventers are operating.
Before the minister could respond to the Lwemiyaga legislator, Butambala County MP Muwanga Kivumbi questioned how the army would pay the over 12 million crime preventers, train them, and also ensure that they don't turn into a rogue force.
According to hon. Kivumbi, the initial plan was to have each crime preventer get 100,000 shillings monthly. He now says the strategic and tactical information about the future of crime preventers needs to be addressed.
But, Minister Rwamirama said crime preventers are currently under transition from police and that UPDF is working out a way to ensure that the issue of crime preventers coming as a reserve force is actually legal.
“UPDF will have to retrain crime preventers to choose those fit to join the army” he added.
According to the minister, as UPDF they have no instructions to recruit the crime preventers, but only keep them under reserve force with no financial implication.
Although they are meant to help with community policing, crime preventers have come on the spot for promoting crime, but at the same time being used in fighting political wars between government and the opposition.
