Besigye warns IGP Ochola he will end badly like Kayihura

Veteran opposition leader Dr Kizza Besigye has told Uganda Police Force (UPF) chief IGP Martins Okoth Ochola it could end in tears for him the way it did for his long-serving predecessor Gen Kale Kayihura.

On January 08, IGP Ochola issued a series of warnings to Ugandans, and the media.

He cautioned those planning to protest before, during or after January 14 general elections they would regret their births.

He went on to tell reporters covering a joint security briefing ahead of elections that he would not apologize for the beating of journalists, insisting officers were beating press people to shield them from danger.

Now, Besigye says Ochola may well have begun on a journey to a disgraceful ending like that of his predecessor.

The four-time presidential candidate argued that Ochola had started working hard to please his master, incumbent President Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni.

“Uganda Police IGP Martins Okoth Ochola may retire a haunted man like his predecessor, if he keeps on the path he’s embarked on,” said Besigye.

“He’s clearly intent on pleasing his tyrant boss and not following the Constitution and laws.”

Kayihura served as Inspector General of Police (IGP) for 13 years until he was sacked in 2018.

By the time Museveni relieved him of his duties, Kayihura had been on the spot over bickering with then security minister Lt Gen (Rtd) Henry Kakurugu Tumukunde, murder of Wakiso women and Muslim leaders.

Kayihura was arrested over charges of aiding and abetting the kidnap and illegal repatriation of Rwandan refugees, failure to protect war materials by giving guns to Abdallah Kitata and his Boda Boda 2010 vigilante group members.

He spent days under detention before he was released on bail. To date, his travel remains restricted.