By KT Reporter
Days after a policeman, Suleiman Chemonges, was lynched by angry mourners in Ibanda District, the police’s Chief Political Commissar, Assistant Inspector General of Police, Ubaldo Bamunoba, has embarked on campaigns against mob justice.
Chemonges, who was attached to Busheshe Police Station, in Ibanda District, was lynched by mourners at the burial of Lazarus Kahangire, who died in Nyabuhikye Government Prison. The locals accused police of orchestrating his arrest after they had allegedly been influenced by a land grabber.
It is reported that the police’s Police Advisory Committee (PAC), which brings together all police directors, expressed concern over Chemonges’ lynching and warned that it could turn into a copycat crime, which needed to be addressed as early as possible.
It was later resolved that Bamunoba conducts sensitizations against mob justice, starting with Kyembogo Cell, Bisheshe Division, in Ibanda District, where Chemonges was lynched.
Police have explained that the choice to start with Bisheshe is intended to address community tensions in Ibanda following the murder of Chemonges.
Bamunoba started with a meeting with the Ibanda District security committee, the district leadership and Police officers to discuss the incident and identify areas for improvement in police-community relations.
Bamunoba met with district leaders at the scene of the incident in Bisheshe, Muziza central ward, Kyembogo LCI, to assess the situation and gather insights.
“This community has been mobilized for a sensitization program aimed at reducing fear and promoting peace. The program focused on the effects of mob justice and the importance of community policing,” Bamunoba said.
A senior police officer said Chemonges chose to rush to a funeral for unknown reasons, leaving his three other colleagues behind.
“We have been told by the district police command that Chemonges was deployed with three others, but he arrived there faster than the others. His colleagues say they don’t know why he did so because they had enough information that the tempers were high at the funeral,” a senior police officer said.
There are also unsubstantiated claims that Chemonges was allegedly called by the person accused of grabbing the deceased’s land to collect information on what was transpiring and brief him afterwards.
Although Samson Kasasira, the Rwizi regional police spokesperson, confirmed that the police’s Professional Standards Unit (PSU) is probing the incident starting from the deployment instruction, it is not clear whether the influence of the accused land grabber is also a line that is being pursued.
According to police, they have strengthened the community policing approach in Ibanda to restore trust and ensure public safety as part of a broader initiative to improve police-community relations and address security concerns in the District.
More than 30 people suspected of having participated in the lynching of Chemonges have been arrested. PSU has also reportedly interrogated six police officers, including the DPC, OC and others who were meant to provide security alongside Chemonges-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
