He clarified the operational context of the Kawempe incident, claiming that police presence, including the K9 unit, was specifically designated to secure a “no go area.”
The Inspector General of Police (IGP) Abas Byakagaba has supported the widely condemned use of police sniffer dogs on National Unity Platform (NUP) supporters during a presidential campaign rally for Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu recently at Kawempe.
IGP Byakagaba asserted that such tools are necessary and legally sanctioned for maintaining law and order, provided their use is proportionate to the threat.
The police action, which saw images circulated showing officers setting dogs on NUP supporters drew sharp condemnation from various public figures, including the Katikkiro of Buganda, Charles Peter Mayiga and the Uganda Law Society.
While addressing the media, Byakagaba robustly defended the use of police assets, including sniffer dogs and firearms, in managing political gatherings.
“Who has grown up not seeing police sniffer dogs? Actually, we have many other assets which we don’t bring out all the time. But when a situation demands, we can bring out what is necessary,” he stated.
He clarified the operational context of the Kawempe incident, claiming that police presence, including the K9 unit, was specifically designated to secure a “no go area.” The IGP placed the responsibility for the confrontation on the supporters who breached the designated cordon.
“For this particular incident in Kawempe, there was a certain area we designated and said this was a no go area and the guidance was that police officers must be there with our assets including K9. Now, when you cross into that area and find the K9, who has attacked the other? The way it’s portrayed in the media, it is like the police who attacked,” Byakagaba remarked.
In a wider statement regarding the use of force, the IGP confirmed that the police are legally mandated to deploy highly coercive measures.
“The law is very clear that force can be used on the public including rifle fire. We hold arms legally,” he acknowledged the potential for misuse, stating,
“There can be misuse and that will be investigated but we are allowed to use these tools. The force has to be proportionate,” thereby underlining the police force’s adherence to the principle of proportionality while firmly resisting calls for a blanket ban on the deployment of controversial assets.
The Katikkiro of Buganda, Charles Peter Mayiga used his X handle to urge security agencies to operate in a”non-violent and non-partisan manner,” stating that the sight of “Bullets; tear gas; dogs! These make the Pearl of Africa bleed!”
Katikkiro urged security agencies to exercise professionalism, restraint, and strict respect for constitutional rights during the ongoing election campaigns, warning that recent policing methods pose a threat to democratic practice.
Mayiga criticised the deployment of police dogs at political rallies, describing the move as an unnecessary escalation of force that undermines public trust.
He argued that campaign events naturally attract large, energetic crowds and should not be treated as criminal scenes.
“It is unrealistic to ban processions of supporters. Political rallies are not prayer meetings to which worshippers go calmly,” he said.
“With Uganda’s public transport and boda bodas, it is unrealistic to expect supporters to move to campaign venues quietly. Ensure supporters don’t harm others, but let them be.”
“With Uganda’s public transport and boda bodas, it is unrealistic to expect supporters to move to campaign venues quietly. Ensure supporters don’t harm others, but let them be.”
Mayiga stressed that maintaining public order must never come at the cost of citizens’ dignity or their constitutionally protected freedoms.
His comments follow widespread concern after Tuesday’s National Unity Platform presidential rally in Kawempe, where police deployed dogs that were seen lunging at and intimidating civilians.
Videos circulating online show the dogs appearing to be hound breeds rather than specialised sniffer or protection dogs – being used in crowd-control operations against supporters of NUP presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, also known as Bobi Wine.
The deployment coincided with other aggressive crowd-dispersal measures, including pepper spray, forceful arrests, and altercations involving police vehicles.
The scenes drew heavy public criticism and reignited debate over the direction of law-enforcement tactics during political seasons.
Mayiga warned that the use of dogs in political spaces evokes troubling historical memories.
He noted that similar methods were used in colonial and apartheid settings to intimidate populations, arguing that such imagery has no place in Uganda’s modern democratic context.
The Katikkiro reaffirmed that the right to peaceful assembly is protected by the Constitution and insisted that security agencies must operate as neutral enforcers of public safety, not tools of political intimidation.
“Once again, I urge police and security agencies to keep law and order in a non-violent and non-partisan manner during this campaign period,” he said.
