The Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) has Friday sent off a total of 160 officers and men under the fifth bunch attached to the General Headquarters in Bombo barracks.
The officers retired from active service have been hailed and appreciated for their contributions to the force, the country and the region.
“As any professional institution, one serves for a particular period and then retires; the officers and men that are retiring from active force today have sacrificed a lot for their country and therefore deserve a good send off like this one,” noted Capt. Charles Kabona a communications officer in the army.
The army Chief of Defense Forces (CDF), Gen. Katumba Wamala said at the event that the retired officers have been equipped with all relevant skills to manage and participate in different economic ventures that they may come across.
The General also warned the retirees against being hoodwinked into fake businesses where they could lose their retirement benefits.
“There are schemers that are waiting to take advantage of your money; invest your money in what you can manage,” Katumba cautioned.
The CDF promised all retirees who have been involved in peace keeping in Somalia whose allowance haven’t been cleared to wait for their payment by the end of Friday next week.
“We have begun paying those that have been in Somalia since the African Union (AU) has already released the money and by Friday everyone would have received their allowances.”
Katumba called upon all the retirees to remain disciplined as they are now being sent into the public to work as UPDF Ambassadors cautioning them against tarnishing the name of their mother institution.