UPDF Chiefs Told to Prepare Successors

What the report says

The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces has called on senior commanders to make succession planning a routine part of leadership, saying the army’s professionalism depends on preparing capable officers to carry institutions forward after retirements and transfers. The remarks were made by Lt Gen Sam Okiding, the Deputy Chief of Defence Forces and Inspector General of the UPDF, during a handover and takeover ceremony for the Commander Reserve Force in Kampala on Monday.

At the event, Lt Gen Charles Otema Awany, who is due to retire, handed command to Maj Gen Joseph Ssemwanga. Okiding praised Otema for 47 years of service and highlighted his role in operations linked to pacifying northern Uganda during the Lord’s Resistance Army insurgency, including Operation Iron Fist and Operation Lightning Thunder. He said the Reserve Force had grown stronger since its establishment and should continue building on that progress.

Otema said leadership should be measured by service and by how well it prepares younger officers to take over. Ssemwanga said he would build on the gains made under his predecessor, strengthen cooperation among officers and reservists, and improve links between the force and national development programmes. The ceremony was attended by senior UPDF officials, including the Chief of Staff Reserve Force and other commanders.