Shocking Testimony: Katumba Tells Court How Gunmen Killed His Daughter, Driver In 2021 Ambush

By Frank Kamuntu

More than five years after surviving an assassination attempt that claimed the lives of his daughter and driver, Public Service Minister Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala has returned to the courtroom to relive the horrifying moments of the attack, telling judges how his daughter’s final cry of “Jesus” remains etched in his memory.

Katumba gave the emotional account on Monday as he appeared before the International Crimes Division of the High Court in Kampala as the 18th prosecution witness in the trial of six suspects accused of involvement in the June 1, 2021 attack.

The attack, which targeted Katumba’s vehicle along Kisota Road, left his daughter, Dr. Brenda Nantongo Wamala, and his driver, Sgt. Haruna Kayondo, dead, while the former army commander sustained serious gunshot wounds.

Testifying before a panel of four judges led by Dr. Winfred Nabisinde, Katumba took the court through the events of that morning, beginning with his departure from his home in Najjera, Wakiso District, at about 8:30 a.m.

He said he was heading to Najjanankumbi to make burial arrangements for his late mother-in-law and had briefly stopped to buy newspapers before the convoy proceeded onto Kisota Road.

According to Katumba, they had travelled for less than 10 minutes when gunfire erupted from behind and the right-hand side of the vehicle.

“At first I had not fully taken in that they were gunshots. I thought maybe a boda boda had crushed into a car, but soon it dawned on me that these were gunshots,” he told court.

Katumba said he was seated in the rear left seat alongside his bodyguard, while Kayondo drove and Brenda sat directly behind the driver.

It was Brenda who was first struck.

“The first victim who took the shots was my daughter. And I heard her shout, ‘Jesus!’ And she fell on my lap,” Katumba recalled.

The attack quickly turned fatal when Kayondo was shot, causing the vehicle to lose control and come to a stop against a perimeter wall.

“I realised that my driver no longer moved the vehicle and I saw his head drop,” he said.

With the attackers still firing, Katumba ordered his bodyguard to engage them. He said he had already been shot in the right arm but was struck again as he attempted to escape from the vehicle through the narrow space between it and the wall.

His left hand was badly shattered by the gunfire.

“That’s when my left hand was also shot and before I knew it, the hand was fully shattered,” he testified.

Katumba and his bodyguard eventually crawled behind the vehicle and used it as cover as the attackers continued exchanging fire with them.

From beneath the vehicle, he said, they could see one of the gunmen attempting to return to the scene before eventually fleeing on a motorcycle.

After the shooting stopped, the bodyguard moved Katumba to an abandoned chicken house nearby for safety. However, worried about the amount of blood he was losing and fearing he could lose consciousness, Katumba later followed him back towards the scene.

By then, a crowd had gathered, with several boda boda riders offering to take the wounded minister to hospital.

Katumba said he initially hesitated because the attack had left him suspicious of everyone around him.

“I hesitated because sitting on a boda boda, I was not sure whether these boda bodas meant well,” he said.

One rider eventually convinced him to trust him and transported him, together with his bodyguard, to Malcolm Clinic, where he received emergency treatment before being transferred to Medipal International Hospital.

Katumba said he remained conscious throughout the ordeal.

“Throughout that time, I never lost consciousness. I was very conscious,” he told the judges.

Doctors later removed a bullet lodged in his right shoulder and operated on his severely injured left arm. He subsequently travelled to the United States for specialised treatment at Emory Hospital in Atlanta after earlier procedures failed to fully correct the damage.

The injuries, however, left permanent consequences.

Katumba told court that he has never fully regained the use of his left arm and estimates that he can now use it at only about 60 percent of its former capacity.

“There are things I can’t do with the left arm because of the limited mobility,” he said.

But beyond the physical injuries, Katumba said the attack fundamentally altered the way he lives and interacts with people.

“The incident of that day changed a lot of my way of life. From then until now, of course, I’m scared for life. I’m protective. I’m not so outgoing again as I was before,” he testified.

Despite the fear and trauma, however, Katumba said the attack had not destroyed his faith in humanity.

“I still love people because there are a few bad people, but the majority of people are good people,” he told court.

Six On Trial

Katumba was testifying in the case against Muhammad Kagugube, Kamada Walusimbi, Suleman Kisambira, Abdulla-Aziz Ramadhan Ddunku, Habib Ramadhan Marajan and Muzaifa Wampa, who are facing charges arising from the attack that killed Brenda and Kayondo and left Katumba seriously injured.

The case is being heard by a four-member panel comprising Dr. Winfred Nabisinde, Susan Okalany, Richard Wejuli Wabwire and Vincent Wagona.

The prosecution, led by Marion Ben Bella, presented Katumba as its 18th witness.

The defence, led by Caleb Alaka, has maintained that the accused are innocent and has challenged the prosecution’s evidence linking them to the attack.

Defence lawyer Geoffrey Turyamusiima argued that none of the 18 witnesses presented by the prosecution had identified any of the accused persons at the crime scene.

“We believe this case is moving well for us, because of all the 18 witnesses presented so far, none has been able to identify any clients as having been seen on the crime scene,” he said.