{UAH} UGANDA LIBERATION WAR 1979. AMIN TOPPLED. LULE SWORN IN.

UGANDA LIBERATION WAR 1979. AMIN TOPPLED. LULE SWORN IN.
On this day, 42 years ago, the Uganda National Liberation Forces (UNLA) Kikoosi Maalum (Special Forces) with Tanzanian Peoples Defence Forces routed Idi Amin's Uganda Army forces and Libyan mercenaries and captured Kampala, bringing an end to the nine year old dictatorship of President Idi Amin.

Oyite-Ojok went on Radio Uganda and declared the fall of Kampala and the ouster of Amin's government. He also appealed to residents to remain calm and for Uganda Army soliders of Amin to surrender. This announcement triggered massive jubilation as crowds of elated civilians thronged the streets of Kampala to celebrate. A sustained looting spree also ensued as shops were ransacked and emptied of merchandise.

On the 13th of April 1979, President Yusuf Kironde Lule was sworn in as the new president of Uganda, having been approved at the Moshi Conference of Ugandan exiles the previous month as the Chairman of the Uganda National Liberation Front - UNLF. The UNLF was governed by the 11-member National Executive Council originally chaired by Yusuf Lule who also held the position of President of Uganda at that Time, with Vice Chairman being Akena P' Ojok.

An interim parliament, the National Consultative Council (NCC) was convened comprising 28 Ugandan exile groups, the most important of which were Kikosi Maalum led by Milton Obote (with Tito Okello and David Oyite Ojok as commanders; Bazillio Olara-Okello was also prominent in this force); FRONASA led by Yoweri Museveni; and the Save Uganda Movement of Akena p'Ojok, William Omaria, Ateker Ejalu.

President Yusuf Kironde Lule would last only 68 days in power, ousted by the NCC when he attempted to use his presidential powers to obtain a majority in the NCC by appointing 24 ministers and 20 deputy ministers who were to become automatic members of the NCC, thereby outnumbering the 30 members chosen at Moshi.

Lule had also displayed his Buganda nationalism when as he was sworn in as president of Uganda, he said in Luganda: "Kyetwayagalizanga embazzi, Kibuyaga asudde" (The tree for which we were searching an axe, the storm has unexpectedly brought it down) a remark which did not go down well with the other regions/leaders.

Lule's fate was thus sealed and the NCC voted him out of office, replacing him with former Attorney General Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa who also attempted a power grab by deploying Oyite-Ojok overseas as ambassador and demoting Yoweri Museveni as minister of defence to minister of regional cooperation. Binaisa was ousted after ten months in office.
A five member body, Military Commission, then took over the governance of Uganda. It comprised Col Zed Maruru, Mr Yoweri Museveni, Mr Paulo Muwanga, Maj Gen Tito Okello and Brig Oyite-Ojok. The Military Commission led Uganda and handed over to President Apollo Milton Obote who had won the (disputed) December 1980 elections.
END
By William Okidi - 11.04.21 - London, UK

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"When a man is stung by a bee, he doesn't set off to destroy all beehives"

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