LAGOS, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)– The Minister of State for Labour, Employment and Industrial Relations in Uganda, Colonel Charles Okello Engola, has been shot dead by one of his military bodyguards in his vehicle on his way to work.
The attacker, who has not been publicly identified, turned the gun on himself, according to state broadcaster UBC.
The victim, Charles Engola, had served in the government of President Yoweri Museveni as the junior minister in charge of labor, also a retired army colonel.
Uganda Police spokesman, Fred Enanga, said, “The shooting was done by one of the minister’s bodyguards who also fired several shots at close range. The shooter then fled the scene to the trading centre at Kyanja Ring Road where he entered a salon and shot himself.”
Enanga noted that the investigations were in the early stages.
“We have dispatched crime scene experts who will use advanced technology to determine what exactly the cause of the murder was,” he added.
According to The Independent, sources disclosed that the Uganda People’s Defence Force soldier complained about non-payment of his wages and mistreatment before he shot himself.
A photo of the crime scene that has gone viral on social media shows the minister’s body in a blue Kaunda suit lying in a pool of blood next to his official car.