Ali Saloongo Kony, the son of fugitive Lord’s Resistance Army commander Joseph Kony, has publicly voiced disappointment over what he describes as prolonged uncertainty surrounding his future in the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), nearly two years after returning from rebellion and undergoing military training.
Saloongo, who abandoned the LRA in 2021 after years in the bush, had hoped his return to Uganda would mark the beginning of a new chapter. Instead, he says he has been left stranded without deployment, salary, or official communication from the military authorities despite completing a Senior Non-Commissioned Officers course in Jinja.
The former rebel commander returned to Uganda in 2023 together with members of his family after reportedly falling out with his father, whose insurgency terrorized northern Uganda for decades. Following his return, he held a high-profile meeting with President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni at State House Entebbe, a move many interpreted as part of government efforts to encourage more LRA defectors to abandon the rebellion.
In 2024, Saloongo was admitted to formal military training at Gaddafi Barracks, where he studied alongside serving UPDF personnel for seven months. Sources familiar with the process say the training was intended to prepare him for possible integration into the national army.
However, nearly a year after completing the course, Saloongo says his expectations have turned into frustration.
Speaking during a recent interview, he revealed that he remains at home without assignment or clear direction from the military establishment.
According to him, the silence from authorities has made him feel abandoned despite undertaking the rehabilitation and training process expected of former combatants seeking reintegration.
He said many of those who trained alongside him were deployed shortly after graduation, while he continues waiting without explanation.
The 31-year-old also disclosed that he has not received any financial facilitation linked to his training or anticipated deployment, forcing him to reconsider his future outside the military structure.
Sources close to the former rebel fighter say he has increasingly shifted attention toward farming and small-scale business activities as he searches for stable means of survival.
Military officials, however, suggest that part of the delay may be linked to disagreements over rank expectations.
UPDF Fourth Infantry Division Commander Felix Busizoori reportedly indicated that Saloongo expected to retain or receive recognition equivalent to the brigadier rank he held within the LRA hierarchy before defecting.
Busizoori explained that the UPDF operates under structured military procedures where ranks are earned progressively through official service and training, not automatically transferred from rebel groups.
According to the commander, undergoing a single military course could not instantly qualify someone for senior command positions in the national army.
The development highlights the complicated realities surrounding the reintegration of former rebel commanders into state institutions. While Uganda has for years encouraged defections from the LRA through amnesty and rehabilitation programs, questions continue to emerge about how ex-commanders are absorbed into civilian or military life after surrender.
Security analysts note that integrating former rebels, especially those who once held senior positions in insurgent groups, often presents political, operational, and institutional challenges for national armies wary of disrupting established command systems.
Saloongo’s case also draws renewed attention to the lingering shadow of the LRA conflict despite the rebel movement’s diminished presence in the region. Though weakened, remnants of the group are still believed to operate in remote parts of the Central African Republic and Sudan.
In recent weeks, Uganda received another group of former LRA fighters and abductees who reportedly escaped from rebel captivity, including women and children believed to have been connected to Joseph Kony’s inner circle.
Meanwhile, Joseph Kony remains a fugitive wanted by the International Criminal Court over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the insurgency in northern Uganda.
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