President Yoweri Museveni has today met Gen. David Tinyefuza at State House in Entebbe and emphasized that Tinyefuza’s return was handled by himself without involving anybody else.
The President said he had initially not commented on the issue of Gen. Tinyefuza’s return but after seeing a lot of stories in the papers, he decided to use this time to sort out the actual facts for the rest of the public.
“Gen. Tinyefuza has been in London but at some stage, I came to learn that he wanted to come back. When I learnt that he wanted to come back, I sent three young people, two of whom are here to contact Gen. Tinyefuza if he wanted to come back home regardless of what has happened. I would see how to ensure his safe entry and sort out all the confusion arising from his stay in London,” he said at a meeting attended by various officials including the two young people Micheal Katungi and Anyine Janet who contacted initiated talks for the General’s return.
The President said while he sent three young people, Gen. Tinyefuza managed to see only two who conveyed his message to him and he agreed to come back home at his cost.
“He agreed to come back at his own cost. I had seen in the papers that he had been bribed…that he was given money…that is not true. We actually wanted to give him an airticket but he said no…that he is a rich man. I don’t know where he got the money from. It is true that I told these young people that we would support him but he declined,” he said.
The President said that because he was handling this by himself, he did not involve anybody else except the young people.
“I don’t think even Brig. Nalweyiso who was facilitating their travel knew. I did not tell her what we were doing. Because I did not tell anybody, I did not want him to come and then be arrested at the airport; that is why on the day he was coming…I had travelled to Abu Dhabi but was on phone with the young people who told me he was coming. Because I did not tell anybody, I did not want him to be harassed at the airport. That is why I sent Brig. Balya at the last minute to go there and wait for Gen. Tinyefuza,” he said.
The President said when the General came, he went direct to his village.
“What has been happening since then has been a lack of coordination partly because of the secrecy of how I handled it,” he said.
The President commended the young people who initiated the talks.
Gen. Tinyefuza said the Brig. Balya bit had caused some confusion with some people claiming that he had been bribed and that he was received officially.
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