By Maria Mariam Namala
KAMPALA.Uganda Prisons Service on Friday elevated 269 senior officers in a promotion exercise based on merit, performance and institutional needs.
According to Commissioner General Dr. Johnson Byabashaija they have plans for new reforms targeting staff welfare and accountability.
The officers were decorated during a piping ceremony held at Pat Grounds, Luzira Prisons Headquarters, with the promotions covering five Senior Commissioners of Prisons, 6 Commissioners of Prisons, 20 Assistant Commissioners of Prisons, 34 Senior Superintendents of Prisons, 134 Senior Assistant Superintendents of Prisons and 43 Assistant Superintendents of Prisons.
Byabashaija told the newly elevated officers that their new ranks came with greater responsibilities, urging them to uphold discipline, leadership and innovation while assuring those who missed promotion that future opportunities would arise.
“To those who are not promoted this time around, this is not the end of promotion,” Byabashaija said.
“There were more eligible officers for promotion, but there was a limitation. Probably when we find that we have a margin to operate in, more promotions will come, definitely. So you should not lose heart.”
He said future promotions would consider not only discipline and dedication to duty but also officers’ ability to develop solutions through innovation.
“Apart from the normal discipline, dedication to work, turn out and smartness, resourcefulness and initiative, leadership ability, judgment, we also added on innovation,” he said.
The Commissioner General also announced plans to establish a board of inquiry to examine concerns raised by junior officers on social media regarding workplace issues, while revealing that the Service was developing a health policy to address emerging challenges, including non-communicable diseases among staff.
Assistant Commissioner General of Prisons and Director of Human Resource Management Hillary Bisanga said the promotion process was conducted through boards established to guarantee fairness, transparency and alignment with the Service’s operational priorities.
“The mandate was to ensure that the promotions were merit-based, were transparent and they were strategically aligned with the service operational priorities,” Bisanga said.
He said the boards relied on officers’ performance records, including annual confidential reports, prison statistical reports, supervisors’ recommendations and information from the Human Resource Information Management System.
“The promotions board executed their mandates with the highest level of integrity, objectivity and fairness,” Bisanga said.
Deputy Commissioner General Samuel Akena said the new ranks should be viewed as an opportunity for greater service delivery and mentorship.
“This elevation is not a destination itself but it’s a stepping stone to even greater responsibility and service delivery,” Akena said.
Speaking on behalf of the newly elevated officers, Senior Commissioner of Prisons Stephen Lugonda credited institutional reforms, mentorship and staff development programmes for strengthening career progression within the Service.
“It is now our sole responsibility to prove that the appointing authority was right in promoting us,” Lugonda said. “We therefore pledge to serve our country with renewed loyalty, integrity, and with the highest standards of professionalism.”
The Uganda Prisons Service said the promotion exercise was intended to strengthen leadership capacity, improve institutional efficiency and ensure its staffing structure responds to the changing demands of managing correctional services.