Seven senior officers of the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) have been officially documented at the Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs (MODVA) headquarters in Mbuya ahead of their retirement later this year. The exercise took place on Tuesday.
Heading the list is Lieutenant General Peter Elwelu, the most senior among the retirees. Lt Gen Elwelu served as Deputy Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) from June 2021 to March 2024, the second-highest position in the UPDF hierarchy. Prior to that, he was Commander of Land Forces from 2017 to 2021.
Earlier in his career, he led the UPDF 2nd Division in Mbarara and notably commanded the controversial 2016 attack on the Rwenzururu Kingdom Palace in Kasese, which resulted in over 150 deaths and the arrest of King Charles Wesley Mumbere. Elwelu was also among the first UPDF commanders deployed to Somalia under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in 2007.
Also set to retire is Major General Hudson Mukasa, currently serving as Uganda’s military attaché to Kenya, a post he has held since 2016. Previously, he held a similar role in Burundi. A veteran of the National Resistance Army since 1983, Mukasa received his military training in Tanzania, Ghana, and Kenya. His command roles have included leading the UPDF 2nd Division in Mbarara (2005–2008), the 5th Division in Lira (2008), and the 503 Brigade in Kitgum during operations against the Lord’s Resistance Army.
Major General Francis Ben Okello is another distinguished retiree. He was the second commander of AMISOM, serving from March 2008 to 2009, where he helped shape Uganda’s early peacekeeping footprint in Somalia. After AMISOM, he led the Uganda Senior Command and Staff College (USCSC), the UPDF’s premier training facility for senior officers.
Major General George Igumba, who until recently also served as commandant of the USCSC, will join his peers in retirement. The college, established in 2003, has been instrumental in training UPDF leadership and was first commanded by the late Maj Gen Benon Biraaro.
The list is rounded out by three brigadiers generals: John Byuma, Dominic Twesigomwe, and Augustine Kamyuka Kyazze—all of whom have held key operational and leadership roles during their decades of service.
