A section of army veterans in the greater Masaka region have asked the government for guns to reinforce the security teams in countering the machete-wielding gangs terrorizing residents in the areas.
The army veterans are already part of the vigilante groups formed to reinforce security in the wake of the fragile security situation where 28 lives have been gruesomely taken by yet to be identified assailants.
The veterans hinged premised their request on the thinly spread security personnel in the region yet the threat at hand demands more manpower to boost the operations.
Wilson Mpungu, a former serviceman and Kako LC1 chairperson in Nyendo-Mukungwe Division, Masaka City said in a meeting attended by area Members of Parliament and local leaders that the assailants simply have blunt objects which noting that if they can be given guns, they use their veteran techniques and save the region from these heartless assailants.
Another veteran Rtd Capt, Gerald Kayemba, who is the LCI chairperson of Luteete village, Kimaanya-Kabonera in Masaka City described Police deployment as defective.
He said Police should be proactive by carrying out undercover deployments in hotspots and avoid noisy patrols that scare away the assailants hence failing to arrest any suspect.
However, in a bid to calm the situation in the region, State Minister for Internal Affairs, Gen David Muhoozi, visited the region and said all culprits behind the insecurity in the greater Masaka area will face the charges of terrorism once caught.
