The Independent (Uganda)
Friday December 21, 2018
Major.
General Paul Elwelu, the UPDF Commander of Land Forces (middle)
conducts the handover from Brigadier.General Paul Lokech to Brigadier.
General Michael Kabango. PHOTO AMISOM MEDIA
Mogadishu, Somalia | THE INDEPENDENT | A new
contingent commander of the Ugandan troops deployed in Somalia, under
the AU peacekeeping mission, has formally taken up office. Brig. Gen.
Michael Kabango succeeds Brig. Gen. Paul Lokech, who has completed his
one-year tour of duty.
This was Brig. Lokech’s second tour of duty in Somalia as contingent
commander, having served in the same capacity during the 2011/2012
period. He is credited with leading the battle that liberated Mogadishu
and other towns in Lower Shabelle region from Al-Shabaab stranglehold.
A command handover ceremony presided over by Maj Gen. Peter Elwelu,
the Commander of the Land Forces of the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces
(UPDF), was held in Mogadishu on Thursday, where the Ugandan top
military official hailed the outgoing contingent commander and his team
for the diligence with which they executed their work.
“The challenges in Somalia affect the whole world and that is why the
international community is here. It is our duty to make this country
peaceful as we work together with our Somali brothers and sisters,” Maj.
Gen. Elwelu said.
Well versed in counter-insurgency, the in-coming contingent commander
Brig. Gen. Kabango first deployed in Somalia in 2008, under UPDF Battle
Goup II and later as Uganda’s Defence Attaché to Somalia. He has also
been UPDF Central African Republic (CAR) contingent commander before.
“I accept the responsibility. I have a very strong team and I pledge
to uphold the image of the UPDF and the AU Mission, as I take up duty,”
Brig. Kabango stated after receiving the instruments of power.
In his remarks, Brig. Gen. Lokech lauded the role the UPDF has played
in fulfilling AMISOM’s mandate, noting that the peace operations
undertaken by the AU troops remain a central pillar in the stabilization
of Somalia.
The outgoing contingent commander, however, urged partners to
increase funding in the fight against the insurgency. He emphasized the
need for force multipliers to expedite the work of the Mission.
“The need for essential force multipliers and enablers is very
crucial, if we are to achieve our maximum output to attain the gains of
operations, in order to degrade the enemy’s capability,” he stressed.
Later, a send-off dinner was organised by the Uganda Embassy in
Somalia to honour the outgoing sector commander and usher in the new
command. The dinner was attended by officials from AMISOM,
representatives of the UN, the United States Army and other
international partners.