David Bugozi Musuguri (4 January 1920 – 29 October 2024) was a Tanzanian military officer who served as Chief of the Tanzania People's Defence Force from 1980 until 1988.
David Musuguri | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | David Bugozi Musuguri |
| Nickname(s) | General Mutukula |
| Born | 4 January 1920 Butiama, Tanganyika |
| Died | 29 October 2024 (aged 104) Mwanza, Tanzania |
| Allegiance |  Britain Tanganyika Tanzania |
| Service | King's African Rifles Tanganyika Rifles Tanzania People's Defence Force |
| Years of service | 1942–1988 |
| Rank | Lieutenant general  |
| Commands | 20th Division TPDF TPDF |
| Battles / wars | |
Biography
editEarly life
editDavid Musuguri was born on 4 January 1920 in Butiama, Tanganyika.[1][a] In 1938, he underwent bhakisero, a traditional rite of passage for Zanaki males involving the filing of the top incisors into triangular shapes.[2]
Military career
editIn 1942, Musugiri enlisted in the King's African Rifles (KAR),[3] beginning as a private.[4] He later served with the KAR in Madagascar.[3] By 1947 he was a sergeant and acted as an instructor at Kahawa Barracks in Nairobi, Kenya. While there he met future Ugandan dictator Idi Amin, who was a pupil of his.[5] In 1957, the British administration introduced the rank of effendi into the KAR, which was awarded to high performing African non-commissioned officers and warrant officers (it was not a true officer classification). Musuguri was given the rank.[6] In December 1961, Tanganyika became a sovereign state and several units of the KAR was transferred to the newly formed Tanganyika Rifles. The rank of effendi was shortly thereafter abandoned,[7] and, by 1962, Musuguri had been promoted to lieutenant.[8] During the Tanganyika Rifles mutiny of January 1964, Musuguri was stationed in Tabora. Rebellious troops, attempting to remove and replace their British officers, declared him a major.[9]
I am proud that I participated in chasing Idi Amin Dada to Saudi Arabia where he sought for asylum. But I can assure you, there is no war that is good. War means killing.
—Musuguri's reflection on the Uganda–Tanzania War[1]
Though reportedly illiterate, Musuguri eventually rose to the rank of brigadier by 1978.[10] In early 1979, he was promoted to major general and given command of the Tanzanian People's Defence Force (TPDF)'s 20th Division, a force that had been assembled to invade Uganda following the outbreak of the Uganda–Tanzania War in 1978.[4][11] During the war, he garnered the nom de guerre "General Mutukula",[12] and successfully commanded his forces during the battles of Simba Hills,[13][14] Masaka,[15][16] and Lukaya,[17][18] as well as Operation Dada Idi.[19] Over the course of the conflict he took charge of over a dozen Ugandan orphans and oversaw their care until they could be turned over to relatives.[20]
In early November 1980, Musuguri was appointed Chief of the TPDF. He returned to Tanzania the following week to take up his new post.[21] On 30 December, President Julius Nyerere promoted him to lieutenant general.[22] On 7 February 1981, Ugandan President Milton Obote gave Musuguri two spears in honor of "his gallant action in the Battle of Lukaya".[23] During his tenure, he was accused of encouraging ethnic favoritism in the armed forces.[24] He was opposed to withdrawing Tanzanian troops from Uganda in 1981 on the grounds that the country had not yet built a reliable armed force, but Nyerere overruled him.[25] His retirement was announced on 31 August 1988.[24]
Later life and death
editFollowing his retirement, Musuguri moved to Butiama.[1][3] In 2002, he endorsed the creation of an East African federation between Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya.[26] In 2014, he was awarded the Order of the Union Third Class by President Jakaya Kikwete.[27] Musuguri turned 100 on 4 January 2020,[1] and died in Mwanza on 29 October 2024, at the age of 104.[28]
Notes
editCitations
edit- ^ a b c d Mugini, Jacob (4 January 2020). "General Musuguri: Ex-CDF Chief Who Turns 100 Years Today". Daily News. Retrieved 4 January 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b Molony 2014, p. 239.
- ^ a b c Molony 2014, p. 213.
- ^ a b Avirgan & Honey 1983, p. 79.
- ^ "General David Musuguri, Idi Amin's nemesis turns 100". The Citizen. 4 January 2020. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
- ^ Tanganyika Rifles Mutiny 1993, pp. 19–20.
- ^ Tanganyika Rifles Mutiny 1993, pp. 20, 25.
- ^ Tanganyika Rifles Mutiny 1993, p. 26.
- ^ Tanganyika Rifles Mutiny 1993, p. 101.
- ^ "Makamanda Walioongoza Vita ya Kagera". Global Publishers (in Swahili). 3 January 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ Lubega, Henry (26 April 2014). "Revisiting the Tanzania-Uganda war that toppled Amin". Daily Monitor. Archived from the original on 24 January 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
- ^ Mzirai 1980, p. 156.
- ^ Avirgan & Honey 1983, pp. 78–79.
- ^ Cooper & Fontanellaz 2015, p. 29.
- ^ Avirgan & Honey 1983, p. 84.
- ^ Cooper & Fontanellaz 2015, pp. 30–31.
- ^ Avirgan & Honey 1983, p. 91.
- ^ Cooper & Fontanellaz 2015, p. 33.
- ^ Avirgan & Honey 1983, p. 94.
- ^ Avirgan & Honey 1983, p. xi.
- ^ "General Musuguri to Tanzania". Sub-Saharan Africa Report. Foreign Broadcast Information Service. 1980.
- ^ "Tanzania : Senior Officers Promoted". Africa Research Bulletin. 1980. p. 5910.
- ^ "Ugandan honour for Tanzanian COS". Summary of World Broadcasts: Non-Arab Africa. No. 6612–6661. 1981. OCLC 378680447.
- ^ a b "Tanzania : New Defence Chief". Africa Research Bulletin. Vol. 25. 1988. p. 9014.
- ^ Avirgan & Honey 1983, pp. 231–232.
- ^ "Tanzania general calls for federation". New Vision. 11 April 2002. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
- ^ "President honours 86 for selfless service". Daily News. Dar es Salaam. 27 April 2014. Archived from the original on 22 July 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
- ^ Takwa, Esther (29 October 2024). "General Musuguri dies at 104". Daily News. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
References
edit- Avirgan, Tony; Honey, Martha (1983). War in Uganda: The Legacy of Idi Amin. Dar es Salaam: Tanzania Publishing House. ISBN 978-9976-1-0056-3.
- Cooper, Tom; Fontanellaz, Adrien (2015). Wars and Insurgencies of Uganda 1971–1994. Solihull: Helion & Company Limited. ISBN 978-1-910294-55-0.
- Molony, Thomas (2014). Nyerere: The Early Years. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. ISBN 9781847010902.
- Mzirai, Baldwin (1980). Kuzama kwa Idi Amin (in Swahili). Dar es Salaam: Publicity International. OCLC 9084117.
- Tanganyika Rifles Mutiny: January 1964. Dar es Salaam University Press. 1993. ISBN 9789976601879.