Opinion:"No Thugs At State House, People's Properties Are Always Safe"-Haji Faruk Kirunda-PPU

The claim by Hon. Kirya Benard Sekyanzi, the Member of Parliament for Budyebo County, that he lost his phone while attending a recent meeting at State House needs deeper analysis. 

First, because of how and where he raised it, and secondly, due to the implication his claim has on the sanctity and integrity of State House as the most highly protected complex in the country.

The MP raised the claim while meeting constituents during a Baraza in which he further claimed that the phone held some critical information regarding land issues in the constituency. 

This was in Nakayoza Village, Lwabiyata Sub County, Nakasongola District, where the MP, alongside the State Minister for Lands, Hon. Dr. Sam Mayanja, addressed land disputes in the area.

While I don’t wish to dismiss the MP’s claim, I have good reason to do so but I will leave investigations to establish the facts. 

However, those who have been to State House before can testify to the security and safety of people and their property while in the precincts of “Plot 1”. It’s the first time ever in my life, including in the years I have been working here to hear of anybody saying he or she had lost property at State House. 

Since 1986 when H.E President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni occupied State House no such incident has happened despite big numbers of guests that come in daily. 

The security protocols at the place are very thorough, as one could imagine. All phones and other metallic or suspicious objects are surrendered at the security gate and an identification pass is issued prior to entry into State House premises. 

Once the visitor is through with what brought them to the premises, they show security their identification pass/card and their phones are returned to them.

This procedure ensures that harmful gadgets are not sneaked into the high security area and that there is orderliness in management of human traffic in and out of the place. 

In my experience, nobody can steal even a handkerchief due to the discipline of the soldiers and most people that come in. All entrants are checked at the check points and no soldier is allowed into the vehicles that bring visitors. In the case of MPs, when they are to attend a meeting at State House, they travel in buses and the particular bus in which MP Sekyanzi travelled had a driver.

Did the MP raise the loss of his phone at the scene? With an electronic gadget, these days it is easier to track them to establish the last location of use. Unfortunately, the MP hadn’t provided details of the handset (make, serial number, etc) by the time of raising the claim in Budyebo. 

I request the MP to provide details to security to track his phone. It doesn’t matter who took it if true. The culprit will be tracked, nailed and shamed.

If that’s not done, then I will have no choice but to conclude that the good legislator had another agenda, perhaps, to seek sympathy among his constituents.

If the claim is baseless it does a lot in undermining the dignity and security profile of “Plot 1”. If a phone can be stolen there, next time it could be something else. It also means that residents (including H.E the President), staff and visitors (including foreign dignitaries) aren’t safe. If no one is safe at State House, how can the whole country be safe? This claim has far-reaching implications and should be investigated appropriately. The Inspector General of Police (IGP) Abbas Byakagaba, Director CID AIGP Magambo and the Director of Crime Intelligence, Brig. Gen. Damulira, should look into the case and inform the public on their findings.

Ordinarily, when a person loses property, the first step to take is to report to police and open a general enquiry file, and get a reference number. Anytime the thief is caught, they are charged accordingly.

I gather that Sekyanzi disclosed to residents that he had substantial evidence on land grabbing and wrangles in Budyebo Constituency and other parts of Nakasongola District, which he had stored electronically on his phone. While this may be true, didn’t he store the same files on other gadgets or in clouds or an email? How can one keep all his “eggs in one basket” at the risk of failing to protect his constituents facing eviction? I advise everyone to always have duplicate files stored in different places just in case one storage point is damaged or lost.

But in alleging a theft of a phone with sensitive information on land matters, is it an attempt to smear State House as harbouring such characters yet State House is central in protecting citizen’s land rights under the overall leadership of His Excellency the President? In fact, if Sekyanzi had such information and really wanted action to be taken on its basis, he should have reported his findings and State House would have assisted to corner the “land grabbing mafia”. With such information, special clearance could have been granted for him to enter with his phone and present the files to the relevant authorities to handle. State House cannot be held liable for any property undeclared to its security which gets misplaced or lost. MP Sekyanzi should clear his name and that of State House by appearing at police and providing details of his “lost” phone and simcard(s) to enable the process of recovery to commence. It’s a matter of employing modern science.

Otherwise, there is nothing to worry about. State House is a very secure place for everybody and his or her possessions.

The author is the Special Assistant to H.E the President of Uganda-Press and Mobilisation

Contact: faruk.kirunda@statehouse.go.ug

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