Minister Otafire Sets Three-Month Deadline for Police Housing Project Resumption

Internal Affairs Minister, Maj Gen Otafiire Kahinda, has directed the Director for Logistics and Procurement, to recommence construction nationwide, to provide decent housing for police officers.

While officiating at police council meeting, Otafire gave a three-month ultimatum to the Uganda Police Force, through AIGP Richard Edyegu, urging resumption of housing unit construction for junior officers.

“You should start constructing the housing units as soon as possible. I am giving you three months to start constructing the houses. You cannot have a force whose accommodation is not well,” he said

Despite Inspector General of Police (IGP) Martin Ochola’s vision of constructing 50,000 houses for personnel, insufficient funding has hampered the project’s advancement over the last five years.

Ochola recently highlighted the force’s commitment to modernizing policing through science and technology. He emphasized the necessity of adopting new digitalized and scientific solutions as the force transitions from policing a non-digitalized to a digitalized and sophisticated crime environment.

The housing initiative, initiated in 2016 by former Inspector General of Police Gen Edward Kale Kayihura, aimed to build 10,000 units. Despite the pilot project of 360 units at Naguru police headquarters being commissioned last year, no additional units have been constructed.

Masaka has been chosen as the pilot area for a sub-county policing model proposed by President Yoweri Museveni in 2019.