The family of the first black Inspector General of Uganda Police Lt. Col. Wilson Erinayo Oryema is in danger after Lt. Gen. Charles Otema, the Commander of the Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) reserve force vandalized their home, fired bullets and threatened to kill them over a land conflict in Nwoya district.
While crying for help on phone, Nancy Erinayo Oryema, the grand daughter to the former IGP told theGrapevine that soldiers commanded by a one Sgt. Komakech stormed their home at Tangi Village, Purongo sub county in Nwoya district and started firing bullets in air vowing that whoever stands in their way will be shot.
Nancy added that they tried to resist while explaining to Sgt. Komakech that they have a Court Order issued by Gulu High Court stopping Lt. Gen. Otema from evicting them from the contested land until their matter before Justice Phillip Odoki is heard.
However, their pleas fell on deaf ears and she was ordered together with her family members to vacate the land because they have the order from Lt. Gen. Otema to protect his land.
She further said that she explained to Sgt. Komakech that the 4th Division Commander Brigadier General Michael Kabango and the Chief of Defense Forces Gen. Wilson Mbasu Mbadi have received their petition over Lt. Gen. Otema’s violation of Court Orders but they only informed her that they are not under the command of Brig. Gen. Kabango but under the Command of Lt. Gen. Otema who brought them from Bombo barracks.
“theGrapevine please helps us, these people are determined to kill us like Idi Amin did to our grandpapa, why is the army always targeting our family,” a tearful Nancy told this website on the phone.
She added that this is not the first time when Lt. Gen. Otema is threatening their lives.
She divulged that on August 19, 2023, Christopher Opwonya Akucu Otema Awany, the son of Lt. Gen. Otema led a raid with the help of UPDF armed soldiers on their ancestral home where Oryema their grandfather was buried.
Shots were fired, and an attempted robbery occurred.
She provided video evidence captured on CCTV camera when Akucu Otema gave orders to the soldiers and oversaw the destruction of property.
She added that the following day, on August 20, 2023, Lt. Gen. Otema himself arrived on foot with a group of soldiers, took the CCTV camera footage, and continued firing shots at the late Oryema’s grave.
She divulged that they have already taken legal action through filing police cases against Akucu and Lt. Gen. Otema at Nwoya Central Police station.
The charges include; attempted murder, attempted robbery, aggravated robbery, malicious damage to property, and trespass.
The stolen property and damages are estimated to be worth over sh. 20 million.
She told theGrapevine that Sgt. Komakech told her that Lt Gen Otema ordered them to execute the eviction as they did to Got Okwara in Lungulu sub-county where over 6600 families were evicted.
In 2019, Nancy led the family of the late Oryema and petitioned Justice Catherine Bamugemereire’s Land Probe accusing Lt. Gen. Otema of grabbing their 6400 acres of land and 4500 heads of cattle and forcing their family members to run into exile in United Kingdom for fear for their lives.
“Everybody here understands the way our grandfather (Erinayo) was murdered by Idi Amin, my Lord, our entire family is still traumatized and no one wants to confront army men. When General Otema came here with military men and started threatening the lives of my relatives, they were forced to join us in the United Kingdom where we stay as exiles,” Nancy narrated to Justice Bamugemereire.
She added that when all her relatives fled the country, Otema started sub-diving their land and giving it to his relatives.
Bamugemereire’s commission was told that among the beneficiaries was Lt. Gen. Otema’s brother and also the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Secretary General Richard Todwong and top military men in Acholi, police officers and RDC’s who are now using the land for farming and other agricultural business.
Nancy also surprised the commission when she revealed that Lt. Gen. Otema provoked them when he decided to bury his father, the late Mzee Savio Ojok Awany near the very place they buried their grandfather Erinayo Oryema.
She said that as a family, they tried to seek help from President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, who she said asked his family to come back to Uganda because it was now a peaceful country, to reign in on his General (Otema) in vain.
“My Lord, the only option we had was to seek a court injunction stopping general Otema from burying his father near my grandfather. We succeeded and we were given a court order that Lt. Gen. Otema violated and he proceeded with burying his father near our grandfather and even damaged his grave,” Nancy said.
She now says at that moment, they didn’t have a place to call home.
Efforts to get a comment from Lt. Gen. Otema or his son were fertile because their phones were off.
However, sources close to them revealed that they are out of the country.
It should however be remembered that Lt. Gen. Otema told a local radio station that he bought the contested land from one of the members of the Oryema family and he has documents to support his claim.
He also boasted that he helped Oryema’s family to come back to the country from exile where they spent years.
When Grapevine contacted, UPDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Felix Kulayigye, he did not pick our calls on his two known phone numbers.
His deputy Col. Deo Akiiki told us that he was attending a military ceremony where he was the master of ceremony.
He advised us to send him a WhatApp or text message which we did but he did not respond by the time theGrapevine published this story.
By Sengooba Alirabaki
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