Minister Kiryowa Kiwanuka Defends UPDF Recruitment Process, Says Army Considers Nationality Not Tribe

The Minister of Defence and Veteran Affairs, Hon. Kiryowa Kiwanuka, has responded to queries raised by Members of Parliament over the ongoing 2026 Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF)` recruitment exercise across the country.

The minister was addressing the House during the 19th sitting of the 1st meeting of the 1st session of the 12th Parliament, chaired by the Speaker of Parliament Rt. Hon. Jacob Oboth-Oboth.

Several legislators raised concerns about alleged irregularities in the recruitment process. Among the issues raised was the registration of recruits from different tribes in regions other than their own, such as a Munyankore being recruited from Mbale District.

In response, the Defence minister clarified that UPDF recruitment does not consider tribe or religion, but nationality and residence.

He said where a person registers from is where he or she is recruited, provided the presented documents show that the person is a resident of that area.

A Member of Parliament from Pallisa District told the House that a recruit named ‘Osire’ from the district, who had presented himself for physical recruitment on 18th August, was instructed by an officer to fill in a different name other than his own, which led to his disqualification.

The MP alleged that the recruit was violated and beaten before being ejected from the recruitment centre.

Responding to the matter, Hon. Kiryowa said the ministry would investigate the incident.
“Ofcourse, we are going to investigate the matter and establish what happened,” he said.

The minister urged Members of Parliament to sensitise people in their constituencies about integrity in matters of security and the UPDF.

He questioned how a person could accept to write a different name other than his own.
“However, we don’t think that Osire would be a desirable member of our fraternity if he can write a wrong name, we can not understand how someone can simply write a wrong name for himself,” noted Hon Kiryowa.

He explained that academic documents are required during recruitment to verify candidates and avoid such mistakes. The minister noted that if the incident was intended as a test by the officer in charge, it was an inappropriate one.
“If it were a test at that centre, I hope it wasn’t because I may come back and report that they tested everyone and they found that this one failed the test,” said Minister Kiryowa.

Another Member of Parliament from Kasanda argued that in the army, personnel act according to orders from seniors, and therefore the recruit had only obeyed an order and should not be excluded from the recruitment.

However, Maj Gen David Gonyi, Commandant of the Senior Command and Staff College, Kimaka and Whip of the UPDF in Parliament, clarified that the candidate could not be said to have acted under orders since he was not yet a soldier.

“First of all, the gentleman was not a soldier yet, and in interviews they will never tell you what they will ask you, if they ask you to call youself something else and you accept, how do we trust that you will be able to protect everyone else in the country?” Maj Gen Gonyi stated.