The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) on 17th December 2021 passed out 111 UPDF Officers in Jinja after successfully completing the Junior Command and Staff Course.

While presiding over the ceremony, Brig Gen Mathew Gureme, the Chief of training and Recruitment observed that Professionalization is the process of turning a group or an occupation into its highest competency.

This process includes having standards, applying certain methods and a character expected from you. One of integrity, reliability, fairness, commitment, having a moral campus, knowing your work, honesty and leadership. “If we say we are professional, then we expect such standards from you,” he told the graduates.

Gen Gureme observed that continuous training is a cardinal function of the UPDF because the security environment keeps changing to expose a variety of new security threats.

Brig. Winston Byaruhanga the Commandant of Junior Command and Staff College Jinja cautioned the officers to continue observing the COVID-19 SOPs and congratulated them upon accomplishing another great milestone in their career.

The 32/ 2021 course intake commenced on the 31st August 2021 and the students were drawn from all UPDF services.

The 16 weeks training is aimed at producing all round officers that can work in both command and staff appointments. Through this course, the participants were taken through a package of programs aimed at enabling them to among other things apply the functions and techniques of  operation in peace and war,  deployment, roles and the interdependence of the armed forces.

Brig. Byaruhanga stated that all the 111 student officers successfully met the course requirements and that the graduates have been equipped with skills to enable them undertake command and staff duties at both units and formation levels.

In his words, “the junior command and staff course is an interesting course in both indoor and outdoor exercises as it ushers you into the world of staff duties and command.  It was challenging in the beginning since it was a new course on my side but it has a lot of ingredients that any military officer would want to go through. I came in as an amateur especially is staff duties, but now I have gained that experience to do staff duties at any level.”

In attendance were; Col Saad Katemba, commandant of Non-commissioned officers academy,  Col Anech Mubangizi, chief instructor Junior command and staff college, ASP Peter Muheki who represented the Regional Prison’s commander, Patience Namara, DPC of police Jinja City, among other Officials.

Credit: Edge.ug