On Wednesday, August 13, 2025, Nebbi police detained six individuals during the UPDF recruitment exercise. They were caught for impersonation after submitting documents with mismatched details. As a result, they were dismissed from the recruitment process.
How Online Application Reduced Irregularities
The UPDF recruitment process now uses online applications, which has greatly reduced irregularities. Lt. Nasser Mene, Public Information Officer (PIO) for the West Nile region, explained that the online system has made it harder for applicants to cheat or lobby for recruitment.
Previously, politicians and high-ranking officers would call recruitment teams to influence decisions. The online system has made such practices harder, ensuring fairer recruitment. Despite this, some issues still arose, including mismatched documents and impersonation.
Issues with Academic Documents
Mr. Robert Abak, the Nebbi Resident District Commissioner, said parents sometimes allow their children to use academic papers bearing relatives’ names. This caused issues when applicants submitted documents that did not match their national IDs, leading to disqualification.
Some applicants could not provide their original academic papers, which led to their exclusion. Abak also mentioned that some applicants had hired academic documents from relatives to secure spots in private security firms. He stressed that such actions would not be tolerated in the UPDF recruitment process.
Physical and Medical Assessments
Out of 108 applicants from Nebbi and Zombo districts, 73 attended the physical and medical assessments. Two applicants collapsed during the warm-up exercise, highlighting the physical demands of the process.
Allan Mungufeni, an applicant from Madi-Okollo, was disappointed after traveling 73 kilometers. Despite being shortlisted, he was disqualified for not having his Primary Leaving Examination (PLE) result slip.
Recruitment Goals and Next Steps
The UPDF aims to recruit 9,627 regular forces into the infantry. Successful candidates will report to Kaweweta Basic Military Training School in Nakaseke District within three days of recruitment.
