The State Minister for Labour Mwesigwa Rukutana was on Saturday arrested by police in Ntungamo together with his three escorts following a shooting incident in Ruhama, Ntungamo district in which one person was seriously injured and a motor vehicle damaged during the NRM primaries on Friday.
“The victim was rushed to hospital in critical condition while the suspects are in detention on charges of inciting violence, attempted murder by shooting and malicious damage,” Polly Namaye, the Deputy Police Spokesperson said.
In a video making rounds on social media, Rukutana is seen picking an AK47 rifle from his police guard and advancing towards a car occupied by unidentified people.
The guard then quickly removes the magazine from the gun, preventing the minister from shooting people.
The incident followed unprecedented violence in Rubaare (the minister’s home town) where Rukutana is battling Naome Kabasharira in the Rushenyi NRM MP primaries.
Voting in some parts of Rushenyi, Ntungamo District, Western Uganda, were on Friday postponed over violence.
However, Rukutana defended himself saying that he was forced to pick a gun from his guard to to protect himself from armed people.
But his rivals say he was bribing people at his home which they raided to collect evidence.
Who is Mwesigwa Rukutana?
Born on November 15, 1959 in Ntungamo district, Rukutana attended Kigezi High School for his O-Level education and Mbarara High School where he completed his A-Level studies.
He holds a Bachelors degree of Laws from Makerere University, He also holds a Diploma in Law Practice from the Law Development Center in Kampala.
Rukutana served as the Registrar of Titles, in the Ministry of Lands, from 1986 until 1988. From 1984 until 1992, he served as a Lecturer in Law at the Law Development Center, in Kampala. In 1994, he was elected as a Delegate to the Constituent Assembly that drafted the 1995 Ugandan Constitution,
In 2001, he was elected to the Ugandan Parliament, to represent Rushenyi County, Ntungamo District and up to date he is the area MP.
In the same year, Rukutana was appointed Minister of State for Finance, serving in that capacity until 2006.
He was later appointed Minister of State for Labor, serving in that capacity until 2009. He was reassigned as State Minister for Education, Responsible for Higher Education, on 16 February 2009.
He was also the State Minister for Labor, a position he served from May 2011 to March 2015 when he was appointed Deputy Attorney General. He was appointed to the post on 1 March 2015, replacing Fred Ruhindi.
Last year, he was appointed State Minister for Labour.
In 2018, Rukutana sparked mixed reactions on social media after a photo of him posing with gun while grazing his cattle went viral. In defence, he said there was nothing wrong with a person herding his livestock with a gun.
In 2019, Rukutana again made headlines when he refused to adhere to the Commission of Inquiry into Land matters’ terms of reference saying he was not ready to be disrespected.
He had been summoned to give clarity on how Government arrived at Shs24billion meant to compensate Dr Muhammad Kasasa over a piece of land in Mutungo, a Kampala suburb.
As the cross examination went on, Rukutana kept on interrupting and interfering the process. Rukutana kept on answering questions arrogantly and disrespectfully – prompting Bamugemereire to kick him out of the hearing.
“There have been allegations that these figures and these contracts are arrived at through an inflated, irregular and even fraudulent process. As it turns out we are confronted by a situation of hostility, combativeness, disrespect a condescending attitude never ever seen before at this point in time as regards the attorney general’s opinion on this issue I will refer to his Excellency the President of Uganda who is the appointing authority so that probably the appointing authority can find another way of verifying, investigating and probing how Shs24.6 billion is about to leave the treasury,” Bamugemereire said before dismissing and discharging Rukutana.
As he moved out of the commission’s premises, he told journalists, “I don’t give a damn. Let her tell the president, she can even tell God.”
Family and Relationships
Rukutana allegedly has more than 10 wives and over 20 children.
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