A new wave of insecurity is stirring sleepless nights for the residents there.
Locals are reporting daily attacks being carried out by a group of unknown thugs who break into their homes and take away valuable items.
The worst hit areas are Senior Quarters, Malukhu, Indian Quarters, Namakwekwe, Busajja-Bwankuba and Nkoma.
Fred Kutosi, a victim explains that a group of about ten thugs on Monday attacked his home in Nkoma and forcefully gained entrance to the house through the roof. He says that he woke up and made alarm which forced the thugs to flee.
Kutosi appeals to the area local council officials to liaise with the security agencies to curb the violence.
// Cue in: “I call upon the…”
Cue out “……that previous evening” //
Records from Eastern Uganda Regional Police Headquarters indicate an increase in cases of armed robberies and burglary.
In one of the cases, a prominent Mbale businessman Sam Kakungulu was shot dead on January 8th as he returned to his home in Indian Quarters. Kakungulu was a regional supplier of Safi a local fruit drink.
Meanwhile, the Manager of the Mbale-based Faith Radio Simon Ojatum was also attacked over the weekend by unknown thugs who beat him to comma.
Ojatum is now recuperating from the home of his eldest brother Brigadier Charles Angina the Chairman of the military court-martial,
On Tuesday morning, he managed to scribble a note indicating that he lost 1.7 million shillings during the attack. He has however not yet commented on what happened as he is still unable to talk.
Diana Nandaula, the Eastern Uganda Police Spokesperson says police had not made any breakthrough in bringing to book the people who killed the businessman and those who attacked the radio manager.
Nandaula says the police have not yet known the motive of the attacks.
She says the attacks prompted police to mount a swoop in Busamaga where 15 people were arrested. She says those arrested in the operation were found smoking marijuana while others were found without identification cards.
The suspects who are being held from Mbale Central Police Station face charges of alleged vagabonds.
# # #
