Former State Minister for Disaster Preparedness Musa Ecweru has warned retired Lt Gen Peter Elwelu to surrender to recognised authorities or face a coordinated security operation, invoking the legacy of the defunct Arrow Boys militia that fought alongside the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) against Joseph Kony’s Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).
Ecweru, a former senior leader of the Arrow Boys, issued the warning amid an escalating confrontation between Elwelu and the military leadership, with the retired former Deputy Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) reportedly in hiding over fears for his personal safety.
Speaking at a press conference in Soroti City, Ecweru appealed to Elwelu to seek the intervention of respected regional leaders, including Soroti Catholic Diocese Bishop Eciru Oliac and the Iteso cultural leader, Emorimor Paul Sande Emolot, to facilitate negotiations with President Museveni.
“I am appealing to my brother Peter: go to Bishop Eciru Oliac of Soroti Catholic Diocese or the Emorimor, who will in turn link you up to us so that we can negotiate your safety with President Museveni,” Ecweru said.
He warned that people concealing Elwelu’s whereabouts could face consequences if they failed to cooperate with authorities, adding that the former fighters could be mobilised to support government security agencies.
“Nobody, I repeat, nobody shall cause havoc in Teso region again for as long as we are still alive,” Ecweru said, referring to an agreement the Arrow Boys entered into with the government after the insurgency in Teso.
He added that the group could activate its former fighters and local intelligence networks to help security forces locate the retired general if he failed to surrender.
The warning introduces a new dimension to the unfolding dispute, drawing a community defence force that helped confront an earlier insurgency into a crisis involving a retired senior military commander.
However, claims that Teso is experiencing heightened tension have been disputed by Ambassador Nelson Ocheger, who questioned Ecweru’s intervention and urged the UPDF to handle the matter.
Ocheger disputes claims of tension
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Ocheger said he had returned from Teso on Tuesday and had not observed the tension Ecweru appeared to describe. “I returned from Teso on Tuesday. There is no tension,” Ocheger wrote.
He questioned Ecweru’s motives, suggesting that the former minister could be seeking political favours by invoking the Arrow Boys and their history. “If Hon. Ecweru is looking for whatever favours, let him ask for it directly,” Ocheger said.
He further accused political leaders of having used and subsequently abandoned the former fighters, warning against involving vulnerable members of the group in the present dispute.
“Involving vulnerable people (Arrow Boys), who they had long used and abandoned won’t work. Leave the UPDF do it’s work and account to Ugandans,” he added.
Ocheger’s response highlights the differing interpretations of Ecweru’s intervention, with the ambassador insisting that the military should retain responsibility for handling the case rather than involving former auxiliary fighters.
The disagreement also raises questions about the role of former community defence structures in a security operation involving a retired general who once occupied one of the highest positions in the UPDF.
From fighting Kony to the Elwelu crisis
The Arrow Boys were formed in 2003 as a community defence force to protect communities in Teso from LRA attacks and other armed incursions.
The group became a significant part of the local resistance to Kony’s fighters, who had terrorised communities across northern and eastern Uganda through killings, abductions and displacement.
Working alongside government forces, the Arrow Boys helped push the LRA out of Teso, although the group was subsequently disbanded as a formal fighting force. Some former members later joined state security agencies, while others remained active in their communities.
Ecweru’s invocation of the group’s history is therefore politically and symbolically significant. His warning draws on the memory of a community that mobilised against an armed insurgency and places the current dispute within a narrative of protecting Teso from insecurity.
But the circumstances surrounding Elwelu’s disappearance differ from the insurgency that the Arrow Boys were formed to confront.
Elwelu, who retired from active military service in August 2025, has been at the centre of a public dispute with Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
The confrontation intensified this week after Muhoozi accused the retired general of stockpiling firearms and ammunition at one of his residences in Teso and demanded that he surrender.
Muhoozi also threatened to declare Elwelu a rebel if he failed to comply. The allegations surrounding the reported weapons recovery have not been independently established in the available reports, while Elwelu’s family has rejected the accusations and questioned the circumstances surrounding the campaign against him.
On Thursday, Muhoozi announced further alleged weapons recoveries and the arrest of Elwelu’s driver, while warning that anyone assisting the retired general would face serious consequences.
Elwelu’s relatives have said he went into hiding because he feared for his life, describing a period of surveillance and security operations involving people close to him.
The military leadership’s allegations and the family’s account remain competing narratives in a dispute whose full circumstances have yet to be publicly established.
Calls for a peaceful resolution
Ecweru’s appeal for Elwelu to approach religious and cultural leaders suggests an attempt to use established regional institutions as intermediaries in the dispute.
His proposal would allow Bishop Eciru and Emorimor Emolot to facilitate contact with the government, potentially creating an avenue for negotiations over the retired general’s safety and the conditions under which he could surrender.
However, Ocheger’s response underscores concerns that the involvement of former Arrow Boys could politicise the matter or expose former fighters to risks they should not be expected to bear.
The disagreement comes at a sensitive moment for Teso, a region whose communities experienced years of insecurity before the defeat of the LRA in the sub-region.
While Ecweru has framed his warning as a defence of the region, Ocheger maintains that there is no general tension and that the UPDF should be allowed to carry out its mandate.
The central question remains whether Elwelu will surrender and under what circumstances, particularly given his reported fears for his personal safety and the serious allegations levelled against him by the military leadership.
For now, Ecweru’s ultimatum and Ocheger’s rebuttal have brought the Arrow Boys’ legacy back into the national conversation, turning a dispute involving senior military figures into a debate over regional security, political motives and the appropriate role of former fighters in a modern security operation.
Author Profile
- Charles Gazza Kodili is a seasoned journalist with over 20 years of experience in the media industry. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication. He’s currently the Chief Editor at the Investigator.
Charles can also be reached via; Tel: +256 774 108978
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