Brig. Charles Arube; Sandhusrt trained officer from Kakwa tribe.
Shot by Amin himself
Three gunshots that ended the coup against Amin
After about 10 minutes of total silence Brig Charles Arube made the
second mistake, attempting to capture president Idi Amin by himself.
Little did he know that Amin was hiding behind the door. Illustration by
Alex Kwizera
By Faustin Mugabe
Posted
Sunday, July 26
2015 at
01:00
In Summary
Costly mistake. In a continuation from last week,
retired Captain Isaac Bakka, Brig Charles Arube’s accomplice in the
March 1974 attempted coup against president Idi Amin, narrates how Arube
blundered. He says Arube changed the initial plan and ended up in
Amin’s ambush at his famous command post at Kololo Hill in Kampala where
the president had been trapped, writes Faustin Mugabe.
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“He told me that as Arube entered, Amin hid behind the main door. It did
not cross his mind that it would be possible [for Amin to take cover
behind the door]. Arube ignored the door and just passed.”
“He
thought the target [Amin] was hiding inside other rooms in the house.
His attention was on the other rooms. Unfortunately, he had left Amin
behind. Amin fired three bullets which hit Arube from his back.”
“He
fell face down – meaning the bullets came from behind. The hole where
the bullet comes out is bigger than where it enters from. I happened to
see Arube’s body at the Mulago hospital mortuary, it had three bullet
holes.”
“Immediately Amin recognised Sgt Toburo, he put him at gun point, saying ‘I’m going to kill you. Where is your brother?”
“Then
he said [to Toburo], ‘you say Arube killed himself. You must never say I
killed him. [You must say] after he [Arube] realised he couldn’t
succeed, out of fear of embarrassment, he turned the gun on himself. I
want you to maintain that.’ Now, that is the story which many people
believed.”
Sgt Toburo was taken to Radio Uganda and said what Amin had told him to say.
http://www.monitor.co.ug/Magazines/PeoplePower/Three-gunshots-that-ended-the-coup-against-Amin/-/689844/2807990/-/5agj00/-/index.html
