President Yoweri Museveni has dissolved the Fisheries Protection Unit (FPU) and relieved its commander, Lt Col Mercy Tukahirwa, of her duties amid growing complaints from fishing communities over alleged abuses.
The directive, issued with immediate effect through the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, was confirmed on Friday by Acting UPDF spokesperson Col Chris Magezi.
Under the restructuring, the FPU has been disbanded and reconstituted as the 155 Marines Battalion, which will now fall under the command and administration of the UPDF Marines Brigade.
President Museveni appointed Major Joseph Ssebukeera as the Commanding Officer of the newly formed 155 Marines Battalion, while Brigadier Michael Nyarwa remains the Commander of the UPDF Marines Brigade.
Lt Col Tukahirwa has since been redeployed to the Office of the Senior Presidential Advisor on Defence and Security (SPADS), headed by Lt Gen (Rtd) Proscovia Nalweyiso, where she will be assigned other responsibilities.
The move follows mounting criticism that the Fisheries Protection Unit had become overly powerful, with fishermen across several lakes accusing its officers of intimidation, brutality, and extortion.
Earlier this month, President Museveni publicly intervened, ordering the immediate return of fishing boats, engines, and gear seized by the FPU. While campaigning in Buliisa District, the President said fishermen from Ntoroko had raised complaints of extortion by personnel attached to the unit.
He directed Maj Gen Daniel Kakono, the Commander of the Field Artillery Division, to personally supervise the recovery and return of the confiscated items.
“If the motorcycles, boats, and engines are not there, you should go for the soldiers who were responsible for confiscating them,” Museveni warned.
Security sources say landing site committees operating under the FPU had increasingly adopted heavy-handed tactics against fishermen, a development that reportedly triggered the President’s decision to dismantle the structures altogether.
Col Magezi said the dissolved committees will be replaced with new ones composed of representatives from indigenous fishing communities and investors, in an effort to restore trust and accountability at landing sites.
He said the Deputy Chief of Defence Forces, Lt Gen Sam Okiding, and the Chief of Defence Intelligence and Security (CDIS), Maj Gen Richard Otto, have been tasked with overseeing the formation of the new committees, a process expected to be completed within three months.
Despite the controversy, Col Magezi praised Lt Col Tukahirwa for her service, saying she had “successfully concluded her tour of duty” as commander of the FPU.
