The Ugandan State Minister for Labour, Employment and Industrial Relations, Col (rtd.) Charles Okello Engola, assassinated on Tuesday morning, 2nd May.
The crime was committed by one of his bodyguards, Wilson Sabiiti, at his home in Kampala, the country’s capital.
The Police spokesperson, Fred Enanga, made this known. He also revealed that another minister’s aide-de-camp, Ronald Otim, sustained serious injuries and was rushed to Mulago hospital.
He said, “He (Engola) was shot at his residence in Kyanja by one of his bodyguards who allegedly fired several shots at close range. He fled from the scene up to the trading centre at Kyanja, Ring Road where he entered a salon and also shot himself dead.”
The first security officials to reach the minister’s residence were Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Tumusiime Katsigazi, Deputy Inspector-General of police, and Maj. Tom Magambo, director of the CID. These arrived after the Police had restricted the crime scene and begun investigations.
The bodyguard had explained before turning the gun to shoot himself that the minister has hoarded his salary of several months of work, an estimated Ush4 million (about $1,000). He reportedly fired warning shots into the air to alert residents of Kyanja town.
One eyewitness reported that the man claimed his wife was pregnant. And, although the minister’s children were attending school, he cannot admit his children in any.
But according to Betty Amongi, Gender and Labour minister and one of the first government officials to arrive the crime scene, Sabiiti “was a new bodyguard.”
She said, “He has been working as his bodyguard for a month. He came from Bombo and joined other security guards assigned to the minister from the Ministry of Gender ad Labour.”
The Police spokesperson revealed that time and more investigations are needed to determine the real reason for the murder. He said, “The investigation is currently in the early stages of review…We don’t want to speculate into the motive of the shooting until we have confirmed.” Chris Baryomunsi, minister of ICT and National Direction, said that Engola was killed while going to a Cabinet meeting.
