Boniface Okoth Ogola, the former Inspector General of Police (IGP), has passed away at Nakasero Hospital in Kampala.
He breathed his last on Friday morning after battling with illness.
Boniface Okoth Ogola served as IGP from 1983 to 1985 during the Obote II regime. Earlier in his career, he worked as an assistant to Uganda’s first IGP, Erinayo Oryema, who was tragically murdered under the regime of President Idi Amin.
The Police Spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner of Police Kituuma Rusoke, is expected to release an official statement regarding Ogola’s death.
Boniface Okoth Ogola fled Uganda just two months before the National Resistance Army (NRA), led by Yoweri Museveni, took power in January 1986. He settled in Pennsylvania, United States, until 2007 when he was met by then-Vice President Prof. Gilbert Bukenya, who, along with Internal Affairs Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, facilitated his return to Uganda.
Boniface Okoth Ogola returned to Uganda in February 2009, publicly expressing his gratitude to the Museveni government for organizing his repatriation. He requested to be redeployed in another capacity, though this did not materialize. He later retired in Tororo, his hometown.
A senior police officer, who wished to remain anonymous as they are not the family spokesperson, shared the news of Ogola’s passing: “The people of Tororo are mourning the loss of Boniface Eron Okoth Ogola, a distinguished figure who served as the Inspector General of Police during the Obote II era. He passed away this morning at Nakasero Hospital.”
In 2018, Ogola was nominated to stand for election as the chief of the Morwa Sule clan, part of the larger Tieng Adhola Cultural Institution.
In a media interview, Ogola reflected on the murder of Oryema by Amin, stating it was inevitable due to Oryema’s strong principles. He also recalled attempts to convince people who had acquired firearms for self-defense during Amin’s rule to surrender them. Unfortunately, his efforts to avert further bloodshed were unsuccessful.
