Opinion: Can Uganda Police be Reformed?

By Richard Musaazi
The lack of accountability in policing, particularly the reluctance to prosecute officers with records of civilian abuse, is intriguing given that no other occupation offers such a level of protection for any form of abuse. Even in cases where officers are charged, the legal outcome tends to be more favourable to police officers than civilians charged with similar offences.
No Oversight
Civilian oversight of Law Enforcement agencies and officers is increasingly the norm in democratic societies. Ugandans do not have civilian’s oversight bodies and often depend on other police services to investigate officer Misconduct
Government CCTV Security Cameras were not made public in the last month’s protest where security agencies killed over 50 people. Most of what happed was recorded on mobile phones and we watched everything. The maltreatment of opposition supporters by the police remains a major problem.
Years of reform requests
Reforms in police have long been a major concern, but the more things change, the more they appear to remain the same.
In 2009 I observed Uganda police, because of their Para-military style during the Kayunga incident they tended to resist change more than other types of organisations. We need to professionalise Uganda police.
“For the most part Uganda Police, still functions in an archaic and outmoded fashion. The officers generally resist change and innovation in the existing police structure and routine. Systems of reward and punishment as well as career development and promotional opportunity often tend to support the ‘semi-skilled labourer’ concept rather than law enforcement as a ‘profession’.”
While my findings were not unexpected, it is intriguing that police also varied “in indicators to be used to assess success and inform … action” and pay “limited attention to statements of strategic purpose.”
Possibilities for reform
Is Uganda police reformable? The answer is both yes and no.
No, because it is not entirely in the hands of the police. Reforms can be initiated by the entities outside policing. Reforming the police is not only about operations, strategic plans, existing legislation or policy. It is an implicitly and explicitly political question.
But it is possible to reform Uganda police. The first step to reform is to acknowledge that we have a problem. In October the minister for security denied the existence of police brutality and excess use of force.
The impetus to reform rarely comes from within police. The minister told us what we already knew that the police had the right to kill us because the military has become both so the citizen are the enemy of the state.
Therefore, in my view rather than protest in front of police stations or against police officers, protests should be directed at elected politicians, who have the power to make change. Those seeking reforms should also work to elect leaders in favour of police reforms. The public must hold elected politicians responsible whenever there is any unnecessary use of force or death of a civilian at the hands of the police.
About the writer. Richard Musaazi is a recognised crime expert and Private Investigator. He owns and manages RPI Global, a business that specialises in on-site and remote digital forensic collection.