Well Done Mr President! Museveni Awarded Katonga Medal For His Role In Creating UPDF
President Museveni has together with his younger brother, Gen Salim Saleh been awarded the “Order of Katonga”, the highest military decoration of the Ugandan honour system.
Museveni was awarded as Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) celebrated the 42nd Tarehe Sita today in Mbarara District, Western Uganda.
This year’s Tarehe Sita celebrations have been held under the theme: “Recognising the Sacrifice of the founders of the Peoples Revolution for social economic transformation.”
Tarehe Sita is the day UPDF marks the attack on Kabamba barracks in 1981 which launched the five-year struggle that brought the National Resistance Movement (NRM) government to power 36 years ago. The day is celebrated every 6th of February.
Museveni was honoured for exhibiting extraordinary instances of heroism in the army and risking his life in the struggle for his country.
Before Chief Justice, Alphonse Owiny Dollo presented the medal to Museveni, Chief of Personnel and Administration of the UPDF, Maj Gen George Igumba said Museveni’s track record is unmeasurable before adding;
“He is a nationalist, democrat, Pan-Africanist, and statesman. He consistently struggled against tyranny and misrule of the country since his school days in the 1960s.
Through the 1970s, he struggled and formed the Front for National Salvation (FRONASA) in the anti-Amin struggle. FRONASA rose to about 10,000 combatants and played a decisive role in the crossing of the Kagera river defeating the Uganda army then in 1979.
In 1980, Museveni formed the Uganda Patriotic Movement (UPM), to take part in the elections. The activists would later be the firm foundation for the people’s struggle in the 1980s.
Museveni led the NRA in the 1981 – 86 war that ushered National Resistance Movement (NRM) into power.”
The Story Behind Katonga Award
The honour was named after the final and decisive battle of the National Resistance Army during the 1986 bush war which was fought near the Katonga River.
The battle happened on October 13, 1985, when government troops and NRA rebels encountered each other in a battle at the strategic bridge on the Katonga River.
In his book, ‘Uganda’s Revolution, 1979-1986; How I saw it’ the late Gen Pecos Kutesa wrote in his book that in order to control the area under NRA/NRM and in order to deny enemy reinforcements for the Mbarara and Masaka garrisons, the NRA rebels had to control all the access routes from Kampala to south-western Uganda.
“River Katonga offered us the best natural barrier and the Katonga bridge was a godsend to us, the defenders of the territory under our jurisdiction. It was the 1st Battalion under Fred Mugisha as my second-in-command and myself which had blocked the bridge. The 5th Battalion under Stephen Kashaka and Ahmed Kashillingi were told to man the southern side of the road,” Gen Pecos said in his book about the river.
“As I had already intimated, the bridge which I had earlier reconnoitred reminded me of the Kalongero bridge of Luweero Triangle. We immediately set up a position a few metres from Lukaya town and moved onto the bridge where we dug in our defences. Effectively, we had cut off Masaka and the whole of southern Uganda from Kampala. This was a very provocative action on the part of the NRA/NRM. The Okello junta could not stomach such an insult and so the famous Katonga bridge battles were set in motion.” he added.
He said that on several occasions, government troops attempted to cross the bridge but ended up in NRA’s kill zone as none ever left.
