On behalf of the Uganda Police Force as well as on my own behalf, I take this singular honor to welcome you to this 26th Police Council meeting.
Honorable Minister, we feel greatly privileged for you to have honored our invitation and spared time to be with us this morning to open and offer guidance to the Police Council members. Your presence is indeed a measure of the serious concern which yourself and the entire Ministry feel about the Uganda Police Force.
Sir, the Police Council is the Policy making organ of the institution and it is created by the Police Act. Broadly, the Police Council performs the following tasks; –
- Reviews the Force policies in line with its mandate.
- Assesses implementation levels as well as missing links
- Recognizes achievements and formulates strategies to overcome the dynamic policing demands of the ever-changing environment.
Building on the guidance offered by H.E the President, achievements of the 25th Police Council resolutions and upon identification of the challenges, and in emphasizing today’s theme of “Enhancing People Centered Policing for a safe and secure society,” the 26th Police Council intends to continue focusing on:
- a)Improving the quality of services that we offer to the public.
- b)Operationalization of the sub-county policing model as guided by H.E the President.
- c)More trainings to have professional Police officers that match courage with compassion, care, integrity and understanding of the population.
- d)Improving the morale and welfare of the personnel especially addressing the pertinent question of accommodation to achieve good staff performance and satisfaction.
- e)Engaging communities through our community policing programs aimed at building a stronger trust between the Police and the population.
- f)Embracing and improving on the use of modern technologies in general policing.
- g)Dealing firmly with governance issues of fighting corruption and improving customer care.
- h)Continuous professional development through specialized training and skills development.
Critically, challenges of poor accommodation, inadequate human resource and funding gaps remain outstanding. Fortunately, there is a deliberate focus on addressing these challenges.
For the last five years, the UPF management embarked on constructing and renovating residential and office accommodation for the officers countrywide.
Honorable Minister, Iam delighted that today, a few minutes from now, you will be able to commission 420 apartments at Naguru which is an addition to the residential housing stock of the Uganda Police Force. Similar accommodation facilities will be constructed in Entebbe and Jinja this financial year before rolling out to other cities and municipalities country wide.
Consequently, I convey my sincere gratitude to you and the entire Ministry of Internal Affairs and Police Authority members for the support and supervisory role offered to the management of the Uganda Police Force.
On a special note, I register my appreciation to H.E. The President of the Republic of Uganda for the endless guidance and support to Uganda Police Force in fighting crime.
With the above remarks, it is my pleasure, to welcome you to address, offer strategic guidance, open the 26th Council meeting and thereafter, proceed to commission the 420 apartments.
I thank you Sir.
J.M. Okoth-Ochola, (Esq)
INSPECTOR GENERAL OF POLICE
