By Ronald Nahabwe
The Uganda Motocross Club (UMC) has awarded Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) One Hundred Million Shillings (Shs100m) as a token of appreciation from the recently concluded Inaugural Armed Forces Appreciation Motocross Championship.
The event, a showcase between international riders and locals, which was held at the Uganda Motocross Arena (UMA) Busiika on October 6, 2019, attracted a huge crowd that turned up to witness the motorbike competition among teams drawn from USA, Belgium, France, DRC , Israel, South Africa and Uganda.
The Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) Gen. David Muhoozi, while receiving the dummy cheque, appreciated the initiative to conduct such an event by both UPDF and Uganda Motocross, saying the event creates a lot of opportunities for having fun, channeling business between people, strengthens the bond between the military and the population, and allows networking.
The Shs100m contribution was proceeds collected as gate fee and from sponsors as a token to thank the UPDF for the enormous work done to secure the country and the region over a long period of sustained peace, security and development.
During the press conference held at the Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs headquarters in Mbuya, General Muhoozi emphasized that
the Motocross showpiece is a great innovation and continues to bring people closer to the army and vice-versa since UPDF is a Peoples’ Army.
He commended both organizers and sponsors for being realistic to Uganda’s process of transformation.
The UPDF Chief of Staff Land Forces and Chairman Organizing Committee of the event, Maj. Gen. Leopold Kyanda, thanked the Wanainchi who turned up for supporting the event and reiterated UPDF’s commitment towards supporting activities geared towards nation building.
The President of Uganda Motocross Championship Dusman Okee, said that “The championship provided a platform for interaction between UPDF and civilians on top of proving to the world that UPDF is truly a Pro-People Army.”
He promised a better outreach next time and commended sponsors, most especially Vision Group, for generously contributing towards the success of the event.
Both Gen Muhoozi and Mr. Okee exchanged monumental at the event as tokens of appreciation.
The presser was also attended by the UPDF Director of Strategic Communication Col. Paddy Ankunda, the UPDF’s Director of protocol Col. Naboth Mwesigwa, the Deputy Defence Spokesperson Lt. Col. Deo Akiiki, representatives from UMC, Vision Group, sponsors from Service and Computer Industries Limited (SCI) among many others.
During the October 6, 2019 Motocross Championship, American Ryan Surrat, Stav and Brother Alon Orland, William Blick Jr and Uganda’s Captain Maxime Van Pee, were among the world star riders who participated in the race.
