KAMPALA: Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba the Army Commander of Land Forces returned to Uganda from his one-day visit to Rwanda on Saturday night with a Ugandan Special Forces Command soldier who strayed into Rwandan territory last year.
The release came shortly after Gen. Muhoozi who is also President Museveni’s son and doubles as Senior Presidential Advisor for Special Operations requested Rwandan President Paul Kagame to release SFC soldier, Private Ronald Arinda.
“I further thank President @PaulKagame for honouring my request to release our SFC soldier, Private Ronald Arinda, who strayed into Rwandan territory on personal business without permission. I returned with him tonight to Uganda. Longlive the friendship of the two countries,” Gen. Muhoozi tweeted.
Uganda accused Rwandan Security forces of abducting Pte Arinda when he went missing at the border with Rwanda late last year.
Following these accusations that were later confirmed by Uganda’s military and the country’s top diplomat in Kigali, it was noted that officials said that the matter would be handled at the highest levels of government.
The Defence and Military spokesperson, Brig Flavia Byekwaso, confirmed that Rwanda had taken an SFC soldier into custody. “It’s true that the arrested UPDF soldier was attached to SFC and was on his pass leave…The higher offices in the country shall handle the matter,” she said.
According to reports from Daily Monitor, the Kabale Resident District Commissioner, Godfrey Nyakahuma, who chairs the district security committee, said: “It’s true our UPDF soldier, Pte Arinda, was [abducted] by the Rwandan security operatives at Omukiyovu Border Trading Centre in Ryakarimira Town Council Kabale District.”
Allegedly taken by Rwandans in November 2021, the SFC soldier lived in Muguli ‘B’ Cell of Kakyerere Ward in Ryakarimira Town Council, Kabale District.
Ryakarimira chairperson, Enock Kazooba, said the SFC soldier was tricked by Rwandan security informers that live at the border on the Ugandan side ostensibly to go and buy cattle. In the middle of a purported bargain, Rwandan security operatives reportedly emerged and took him away forcibly.
The abduction came in amidst strained relations between Uganda and Rwanda resulting from Rwanda’s closure of its main border with Uganda in 2019.
In addition to the request to release the SFC soldier, Gen. Muhoozi also had cordial and in-depth discussions about how to improve bilateral relations between Uganda and Rwanda.
“I thank President @PaulKagame for the very warm reception my delegation and I received in Kigali today. We held very cordial and in-depth discussions about how to improve our bilateral relations,” Gen Muhoozi added in a tweet after landing at Entebbe Airport.
The timely visit was intended to fix the Rwanda-Uganda problem once and for all.
“I’m confident that under the leadership of our two Presidents we shall be able to quickly restore our historical good relations,” Gen. Muhoozi concluded in another tweet.