EVERY effort must be made to help war-torn Somalia get back on its feet, the Chief of Defense Forces, Gen. Aronda Nyakairima, has said.
Nyakairima, who was in the Somali capital Mogadishu from December 22 to 24, said it was the responsibility of the region to ensure that peace and calm return to the country, which has been ravaged by insurgency.
The Army chief said Uganda had drawn her lessons from the 70s when the Tanzanian President at the time, Julius Nyerere, took action against dictator Idi Amin, who had been accused of killing Ugandans with impunity.
According to him, Nyerere was a great pan-Africanist, who did not tolerate the abuse and killing of Africans, even when they were not his countrymen.
Addressing excited officers and men at the Uganda Contingent Headquarters at Camp Halane, he hailed the troops for a job well done, but pointed out that extra effort would be required in 2011.
Nyakairima, who assessed the progress of the Ugandan force, described Uganda’s commitment to help Somalia as “solid” and “unshakable”.
Uganda has deployed thousands of soldiers in Somalia, where the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces are battling the al-Shabaab, a terrorist group with links to the al-Qaeda.
Nyakairima saluted them for helping to return lasting peace to the troubled country.
Among other proposals, Nyakairima suggested a surge in troop levels to ensure the total liberation of Mogadishu City from extremist forces before moving on to occupy Kismayo Port in southern Somalia.
Kismayo, he said, was the main source of logistical supplies and reinforcements to extremists.
The other measure he proposed was the setting up of a sea and air blockade.
During the visit, General Nyakairima also met and held closed-door talks with TFG president Sheik Sherif Ahmed, prime minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed as well as the speaker of parliament, the chief of staff of the Somalia National Forces and other government officials.
