President Museveni has for the first time spoken out about the fate of crime preventers all over the country saying they are “his project” not Kale Kaihura, the sacked former Inspector General of Police.
Kaihura had been widely perceived as the crime preventers’ god father, and after he was sacked, their fate was uncertain.
Speaking to a group of over 2000 coordinators for the crime preventers at the MTN arena in Lugogo earlier today, Museveni laughed at critics of the group for speaking ill about them.
Before his sacking, Kaihura praised the group for being instrumental in fighting crime all over the country, prompting many to brand the group his own creation and ready to serve him.
However according to Museveni, the idea of crime preventers was a replica of the set-up of the National Resistance Army.
He equated the crime preventers and the local communities to the body system and the heart as they need and depend on each other.
Museveni said that while chief political commissar of the UPDF, Gen. Kale Kayihura spearheaded such a program in the army, adding that it is the same idea of crime preventers that he introduced to the police force.
Museveni said that the 12 million crime preventers all over the country can now be regarded as the reserve force of the UPDF. He said that the group can be actively involved in detection and prevention of crime but could also be useful in case of any invasion on the country to act as the reserve force.
The National Coordinator for crime preventers, Blaise Kamugisha told Museveni that as they did in the 2016 general elections, they will always be ready to protect him and canvass for him votes.
Museveni urged them to engage in income generating activities like commercial agriculture so as to avoid being redundant. He pledged Shs 1.3 billion shillings towards the group’s sacco.