The Commandant of Military Police (MP) Brigade, Maj Gen William Bainomugisha, has urged female combatants to avoid early pregnancy and instead pursue military courses to achieve career progression in the army.
“Be ready to exit or do Military Police courses to fit the task credentials than producing” he said.
Maj Gen Bainomugisha made the remarks on Thursday, during the opening of a two-day female combatants’ seminar held at the 10 MP Brigade Headquarters in Makindye.
He warned that he would not entertain personnel who dodge courses and hope to remain in the Military Police department.
Maj Gen Bainomugisha cited UPDF female Generals, noting that the ranks they hold today are a result of hard work and the many military courses they have attended to reach that milestone.
The two-day seminar is aimed at reviewing and assessing female performance and key tasks undertaken by women, especially during VIP duties and prison handling.
He said such duties require skilled and professional soldiers who have undertaken courses like Level III, adding that it is prudent to complete four years of service before childbearing.
The participants, both officers and militants, were drawn from various Military Police battalions and the Brigade Headquarters.
Maj Gen Bainomugisha further noted that some female combatants had not managed to benefit from the seminar since they are engaged in a multiplicity of ongoing operations in the Kampala Metropolitan area and on various courses.
Among the key staff officers who attended the seminar was the new Brigade Administration Officer (BAO) Lt Col Solome Nalukowe, who implored the 336 female participants to put discipline first in the army, and the new Brigade Political Commissar, Maj Begiza, among others.
“As other fellow combatants are attending military courses and participating in other military duties, you are on maternity leave,” said Capt Winfred Sande.
Capt Sande also gave a testimony on how she benefited from avoiding pregnancy during the first four years of service.
She got an opportunity to attend a Political Commissariat course during her first year in service, went on study leave fully catered for by the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF), and she also became an officer because of the good discipline she possessed.
