By Seruga Titus
On 13 May 2015, a Burundian Military Godefroid Niyombare declared a coup d’état, announcing on a privately owned local radio that
President “Pierre Nkurunziza has been dismissed”.
President Nkurunziza was at the time in the neighboring Tanzania attending the 13th Extraordinary Summit of the East African Community
Heads of State, which had been convened to discuss the situation in Burundi.
Nkurunziza attempted to fly back to Burundi, but his plane was turned back to Tanzania because some mutinying soldiers
loyal to Gen Niyombare had seized control of Bujumbura International Airport.
Nevertheless, the head of the country’s armed forces, Gen Prime Niyongabo, declared from the RTNB state radio complex during the night
of 13–14 May that the coup attempt had been defeated and called on rebel soldiers to surrender.
Patriotic and President Nkurunziza loyalist forces remained in control of the state radio and the country’s presidential palace. Later in the day on 14 May, Nkurunziza announced that he had returned to Burundi.
Following the failed coup, Burundi faced a number of targeted assassinations on members of president Nkurunzinza’s ruling party, close confidants including politicians, family members, relatives and military officers.
For example there was an assassination of Gen Adolphe Nshimirimana the then intelligence enforcer in Burundi in 2015, assassination of Col Jean Bokomagu, assassination of Lt Col Darius Ikurakure a cousin to president Nkurunziza in 2016, assassination of Honorable Hafsa Mossi 2016 an MP for EALA and assassination attempts on Burundi’s Chief of Defense Forces Gen Prime Niyongabo in 2015 and finally assassination attempts on Ambassador Willy Nyamitwe a senior communications advisor to president Nkurunziza in 2016.
Rwanda was accused of aiding the coup attempt and backing fighters in northern Burundi most especially the Red Tabara rebels to over throw the government of Burundi and causing anarchy.
For example, BBC Africa in 2016 quoted Burundi national Police spokesman Pierre Nkurukiye as saying that instructions were sent from the neighboring Rwanda to plotters in the Burundian military to kill Nyamitwe a claim Rwanda has never respond to.
Still today, Burundi has been accusing Rwanda of carrying out recruitments in refugee camps, especially in Mahama refugee camp, where refugees are taken for military training, and some of the
trainers are Rwandans to destabilize Bujumbura.
After high profile assassinations and attempts in drive of regime change in Burundi, the country’s intelligence services went totally hard in their counter intelligence against Rwanda’s invasion that were causing anarchy in the country.
Any Rwandan operative on Burundian soil was arrested and severely punished and double agents within the Burundian security system were given the harshest treatment for betraying their motherland.
By the end of 2016, Burundi had become a no go area for Rwandan agents up to date.
It is reported that the target has been president Nkurunziza for a regime change but the plan was nipped from its bud.
ENTER UGANDA
After Burundi became so hard for Kigali agents because they were not able to operate freely to kidnap and illegally repatriate whoever they wanted, they turned guns to Kampala to create the same scenario because the two countries were also having frosty relations.
They wanted to create the same scenario where President Museveni’s close confidants and high profile people are killed and it is blamed on his government thus causing hatred and international condemnation leading to his regime fall.
They knew once Museveni is isolated from his own close people, then the public would do the rest thus achieve their mission to bring a successor in their favour.
Remember the Burundi like targeted assassinations had been on going in Uganda for a couple of years.
This saw the assassination of Sheikh Abdul Karim Sentamu in 2011 at William street in Kampala, Hajj Kigejogejo Kiwewa of Kyanja supermarket in Ntinda in 2012, Busoga Muslim killings in 2013, Sheikh Mustapha Bahiga in 2014, Joan Kagezi on April 30 2015, Sheikh Hassan Kirya also in 2015, Maj Sheik Mohammed Kigundu in 2016, AIGP Andrew Felix Kaweesi on March 17 in 2017, Hon Col Ibrahim Abiriga on Friday June 8, 2018 and Wakiso women murders.
All the assassinations were blamed on allied for Democratic Forces (AD) terrorists based in DR Congo but the group never comes out to
claim the responsibility just like other terrorists do for propaganda purposes.
Still, no ADF suspect has ever been convicted in these assassinations not even their former supreme leader Jamilu Mukulu who is being tried for different cases.
All this was being supported and aided by some rogue security officers mostly some senior police officers led by former police administration.
There had also been attempts to plan coups in Uganda like after 2016 elections but they were always dismantled and perpetrators punished severely.
INTELLIGENCE LEAK
It is reported that senior intelligence chiefs briefed the head of state about senior security officers working for Kigali to destabilize Uganda and cause hatred for the government among the populace.
Intelligence had briefed the president that some security officers mainly in police were in fact superintending over murders, assassinations, kidnappings, illegal repatriation of refugees from camps and handing them over to Kigali.
It was further reported that the head of state was informed that in all the assassinations, police as lead investigator was using ADF rebels as a scapegoat.
The president who likes listening before acting reportedly kept quiet and instituted his counter intelligence squads to gather enough evidence.
It should be remembered that the president while visiting the home of late AIGP Andrew Felix Kaweesi after his assassination warned then IGP to clean “his house or will help him clean it.
After police did too little or nothing to change the statusquo, the head of state responded by carrying out massive security and intelligence overhaul in which the latter was sacked and replaced with his deputy.
The commander in chief did not stop with police leadership, he also went for the Chieftanance of Military Intelligence and replaced its then DG Brig Charles Bakahumura with a no-nonsense Brig Gen Abel Kandiho, he also cracked a whip on Internal Security Organization and replaced its spy chief Brigadier Ronnie Balya with another serious and patriotic Ugandan Col Kaka Bagyenda.
He had earlier appointed Gen Henry Tumukunde who helped to unearth the rot in security and intelligence organs and was later replaced by Gen Elly Tumwiine another patritiotic bush war hero who doesn’t joke in matters of protecting his motherland after job well done by his predecessor.
Earlier, joint intelligence teams had arrested senior police officers SCP Joel Aguma, SSP Nixon Agasirwe and others for working with Rwandan agents in the kidnap and illegal repatriation of Rwandese refugees most who were executed.
They also carried out a number of arrests against suspected Rwanda’s spy agents from different areas in the country for committing a number of serious crimes and combed all government departments, agencies, NGOs and other multinational corporations holding Rwandan wrong elements not forgetting the deportations at MTN-Uganda.
Then IGP who was alleged to have been maintaining close links with Rwandan agents was arrested alongside his blue-eyed boys and were detained at Makindye military barracks cells.
However, ever since their appointments Gen Kandiho and Col Kaka as heads of intelligence and security in Uganda, they have suffered from blackmail and hate speech through Rwandan social media trolls and state sponsored newspapers like The NewTimes and other websites linked to the country’s security organs.
They have been called names, accused of supporting genocide, supporting Rwandan opposition groups and being anti-Rwanda.
This is because unlike former rogue security officers, the two are very patriotic and not willing to compromise Ugandan’s national security by
allowing foreign agents to commit crimes in Uganda with impunity.
During last week Friday Luanda MoU adhoc committee meeting in Kigali, their names further featured prominently in Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe’s speech where he said Rwanda wants them to be punished and their crime is living their sworn duty and responsibility to secure and defend the territorial integrity of their country from Rwandan or any other foreign aggression.
Their crime is eliminating cells of foreign security agents, protecting refugees, asylum seekers and Ugandans of Rwandan origin whom the latter perceives to be their critics.
In fact ever since they assumed office, they have been on top of the situation and yielded very many fruits and Uganda is too difficult for foreign agents to come and commit crimes unhindered because their targets are monitored 24/7 by the intelligence.
