Former Kampala District Poice Commnder(DPC) Joseph Bakaleke has been transferred to Masaka City in a move that has been viewed as a strategic preparation for the 2026 political season in a city dominated by the opposition.
He begins his tour of duty in Masaka from Kabale where has been since December 2023. He replaces SP Okello Francis who has swapped places, moving to Kabale in the process.
Bakaleke’s experience and high efficiency comes handy for Masaka which has faced a lot of policing challenges in the past.
Masaka, as he been over the years, an opposition stronghold, with all the three Members of Parliament slots in the city occupied by the opposition National Unity Platform ( NUP) in the last general election.
Besides the political opposition infestation, Masaka has recently been a volatile area for subversion. In early 2021, the machete attacks (bijambiya) which was linked to rebel outfit- ADF made the region a key target for security and policing operation.
*Who is Bakaleke*
For an ordinary Ugadan, the name Bakaleke first became attention grabbing following his appointment as DPC Kampala Central Police Station in 2016. Thrown into the furnace hot post 2016 election, Bakaleke made the Uganda Police Force proud when he ably restored calm in the city with his top notch man management and policing qualities.
To fellow police officers, he had been a household name, however. As head of the police training school, Kabalye, most of the officers who trained in the past seven or so years had gone through his hands.
When the bosses at Nagulu were convinced the he had achieved everything there, was, Bakaleke was again earmarked for another challenging deployment as DPC, Kiryandogo. Due to its huge refugee population, there was need to ensure there was stability and stamping out associated criminality.
His two year stint here would be followed by transfers to Kapchorwa for two years before moving to Kabale from where he joins Masaka city.
Without any doubt, Bakaleke knows that he is not brought to his new station to make merry due to the unique nature of the area and its people weight against the interests of the government. It is, however, an understatement to even assert that the force has truly identified the right man for the right challenge. We wish him all the best in Masaka.
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