UGANDA: MEET MAJ. TOMAS KIYENGO WHO GAVE MUSEVENI'S NRA A BLOODY NOSE

 

NOTE by Editor - this post likely has some minor errors but today but we shall correct them soon. Thanks for understanding. MLN 

By CHANGE OF GUARDS

In 1979, the 19 year old Tomas Katabazi Kiyengo from Kimwanyi, Mpenja in Gomba who had a year earlier completed his 'A' Level of secondary education, was one of the 15 recruits recruited from his District for the first Officer Cadet course for the UNLA following the fall of Iddi Amin and disbandment of the Uganda Army. Together with 301 other Ugandans recruited from a cross the country, they headed to Tanzania for Officer Cadet training at the Monduli Military Academy. Others of his intake include the likes of now Gen. Tumwine, Gen. Pecos Kuteesa, Gen. Jeje Odong and Gen. Katumba Wamala.

Upon return to Uganda he was posted to the West Nile region where the defeated former UA soldiers loyal to the deposed Iddi Amin who had fled to Congo and Sudan we're making armed incursions. As a Company Commander (109 soldiers), on December 23, 1980 he suffered a defeat from the UNRF insurgents that almost wiped out his entire company. He survived by a whisker before he and his one bodyguard fled on foot a distance of 60km to Moyo town. With reinforcements from Gulu and Kampala, the insurgents were driven out of West Nile and normalcy restored. The then Lt. Tomas Kiyengo eventually became the Commanding Officer of the West Nile based 11th Battalion headquartered at Bondo Barracks. However, cross border skirmishes in West Nile by UNRF continued but by 1983 his forces had succeeded in containing the insurgency. Among the foot soldiers under his command was in West Nile region was a one Corporal Jane's Kazini who later escaped through Congo to join Museveni's NRA. He was later to become a General and Museveni's army chief.

Owing to his above excellent performance in West Nile region, around late 1984 Lt. Tomas Kiyengo was transferred to the central region and in particular to the Luwero Triangle where the UNLA was battling Museveni's NRA insurgents. He took up the role of Operations Commander of the Bombo based 50th Brigade under the Command of Lt. Col. John Ogole. With the 50th Brigade's Mobile Units under the command of the Second in Command, Maj. Eric Odwar, Lt. Tomas Kiyengo the Operations Commander excelled. Being a Muganda, he embarked on winning over the Lost love of the local population in the Luwero Triangle while at the same time hitting the NRA hard. All the NRA Bush combatants will tell you the hard time they got from Commander Kiyengo. He claims that it was the defeats that the NRA suffered at his hands that forced it to split and relocate to the Rwenzori Mountains in 1984. He claims to have followed the NRA up to Kyenjojo where he had his last battle.

His military success was undermined by the ethnic in fighting within the UNLA where the majority Acholi were in a power struggle with the top command dominated Langis. His close confidant Maj. Eric Odwar retreated to the northern region where Acholi soldiers were regrouping under Brig. Bazilio Okello to overthrow Obote. To counter the advancing Acholi rebelling UNLA, Kiyengo was tasked with them around areas of Wobulenzi along the Kampala Gulu highway. He laid a two mile long ambush into which the UNLA column fell but before opening fire, a quick communication with his old friend Maj. Eric Odwar who was in Nakasongola, he was convinced to join the rebellion. He turned his guns on the Obote faction of the UNLA in Kampala heading straight to defeat Maj. Olwor's 9th Battalion based at Makindye Barracks.

He went on to command the offensive against the NRA that resulted into the infamous Katonga stalemate. It was during the Katonga offensive that he was selected to the government delegation to the 1985 Nairobi Peace Talks with Museveni. During this period he was promoted from Lt. to Maj. However, while in Nairobi's Hilton Hotel, Museveni sneaked into his room and held some private discussions with him. This private meeting with Museveni in Nairobi was construed by Kampala as a betrayal. To get rid of him, he was immediately sent to Tanzania for a Battalion Commander's course. A weeks later, the NRA crossed Katonga Bridge and the following week it overthrew the the government. He continued with his training in Tanzania and the then NRA Army Commander, Elly Tumwine personally delivered Museveni's invitation for Kiyengo to return to Uganda after completion of the training.

Indeed he returned to Uganda and like was the case with his other defeated UNLA colleagues, he was sent to Kiburara Prison Farm for political indoctrination. During their pass out, Museveni publicly told Kiyengo "I am happy you are now on my side" before promising to deploy him into command positions after the one weeks pass leave. It was during the at leave that Kiyengo was arrested and detained without trial for over five years until 1992 when he was discharged from military service. With a flat package of 20 iron sheets, Kiyengo settled into farming in his home area. He is the Gomba OWC Commander and Chairman of the 195 army Veterans, 75 widows of army Veterans and 60 orphans of army veterans - a responsibility that keeps him closer to the authorities. He is a supporter of NRM not out of conviction but just as a survival tactic.

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM