Former Arrow Boys commanders in Teso have endorsed Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba as a potential successor to President Yoweri Museveni, saying they want to prepare for what they describe as a peaceful political transition in 2031.
The endorsement brings the former Arrow Auxiliary Forces, which played a role in the fight against the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) insurgency in Teso, back into the political spotlight more than two decades after their formation.
The Arrow Boys were organised in 2003 following the LRA invasion of Teso, with close to 10,000 people reportedly armed to supplement the Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) in efforts to pacify the region.
After the defeat of the LRA, the force was demobilised. About 2,500 former auxiliaries were absorbed into the police, while another 2,600 joined the UPDF.
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However, nearly 5,000 former Arrow Boys remained in their communities.
It is this group of former fighters and commanders that is now being mobilised around a new agenda combining community development, security and support for Gen. Muhoozi.
The former commanders say their support for Muhoozi is linked to preparations for a future transition and is not intended to signal an immediate change of government.
According to their commander, Musa Ecweru, a former State Minister for Works, about 12 Arrow commanders first travelled to Kampala to make their position known at the headquarters of the Patriotic League of Uganda before returning to Teso to mobilise other former commanders.
A total of 119 commanders subsequently gathered in Teso to take the endorsement message to communities across the region.
Ecweru said they want Uganda's transition from President Museveni to be planned in advance to avoid what they describe as possible disruption to the country's peace and development.
One of the organisers said preparations should focus on ensuring that any future transition does not reverse the country's development trajectory.
Former Arrow commanders also point to Gen. Muhoozi's involvement in the Teso conflict as one of the reasons for their support.
They recall that Muhoozi, who was then a major, came to Teso at a time when the LRA was exerting pressure on the region and supported government and Arrow forces in operations against the rebels.
The former commanders say they remember his association with them during what they describe as one of the darkest periods in Teso's history.
Robert Adiyama Ekaju, a former Arrow commander who served as head of counter-intelligence from 2003 to 2007, said the former fighters view Muhoozi as a comrade who identified with them during the insurgency.
He said their support is based partly on their experience of working alongside him during the conflict.
The mobilisation is taking place under the broader activities of the Patriotic League of Uganda, which the commanders describe as a civic organisation advancing the National Resistance Movement's (NRM) peace and development agenda.
The commanders maintain that supporting Muhoozi does not amount to removing the current government, but rather preparing for a future transition.
They say their intention is to have Muhoozi available for a possible "call to duty" in 2031 while President Museveni continues to govern under the current political arrangement.
The endorsement therefore places the former Arrow Boys at the centre of a growing political mobilisation around the question of Uganda's leadership beyond 2031.
The former Arrow Boys are also using the mobilisation to push for improved welfare among their members.
Ecweru said about 4,900 to 5,000 former auxiliaries who remained in their communities after the war have not received the same institutional integration as those who joined the police and UPDF.
The commanders say a proposal has been made for the remaining former fighters to receive a one-off financial appreciation from the government.
A nominal roll of the beneficiaries has reportedly been prepared and submitted to the army leadership.
While waiting for the proposed support, the commanders are being encouraged to engage in agriculture.
Each commander was given 10 kilogrammes of improved maize seed and three kilogrammes of improved soybean seed, with plans to provide other planting materials, including coffee and cocoa seedlings.
The initiative is intended to encourage former commanders to lead their communities by example while improving household livelihoods.
The former commanders are also seeking renewed involvement in community security.
They have raised concerns about groups of young men locally referred to as "wokwok", whom they say are involved in roadblocks, assaults and other forms of lawlessness in parts of Teso.
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They are calling for closer coordination between Arrow leaders, police and other security agencies to identify young people involved in crime and drug abuse.
The commanders argue that their knowledge of villages and communities could help security agencies address emerging threats at the local level.
For a group that emerged from one of Teso's most difficult periods, the current mobilisation marks a significant change in its role.
The Arrow Boys were initially created as an armed auxiliary force during the LRA insurgency. Following the end of the conflict, some members joined the formal security forces while thousands returned to civilian life.
Today, former commanders are seeking to use their networks for political mobilisation, agricultural development and community security.
Their endorsement of Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba adds another dimension to their evolving role, placing the former fighters within the debate over Uganda's political transition in 2031.
For the former Arrow commanders, their stated message is that the organisation that once helped defend Teso during the war can now contribute to what they describe as maintaining peace, supporting development and preparing communities for the country's next political chapter.
