Five days ago the security agencies in Uganda were taken by surprise by a bomb blast at a bar in Kampala.  The explosion killed one person. Three suspected bombers disguised themselves as customers before planting the explosives under a table, police say.

The Islamic State group (IS) later claimed responsibility describing how they were behind the attack. The explosion comes one week barely after the United Kingdom government issued a terror alert putting Uganda in the spotlight of danger.

On Tuesday, another suicide bomber blast himself in a bus. The blast injured several people and killed the bomber. The Ugandan police also said the blast that was on a long-distance bus Monday evening, that injured several people, was a suicide terror attack carried out by a jihadist. The explosion on the bus near the Ugandan capital, Kampala, followed a bombing at a cafe on Saturday evening that killed one person and injured three others.

However, since the incidence of the second terrorist attack in Uganda, the government has heightened security in all districts across the country including its northern city of Gulu bordering South Sudan.  In Gulu, the security agencies were seen on Wednesday checking all vehicles on the streets as well as those entering the parks. The distance of Gulu from the scene of the two attacks in Kampala run into several kilometres, but the government has taken it very seriously to heighten the security in all parts of the country to prevent the attackers from attacking the city.

Each terrorist group often has its reasons for attacking a particular area or country but this does not rule other needs to extend their activities beyond the area of the target.

So, the continued attacks of terrorists in Uganda is likely to pose a serious threat to the neighbouring countries especially South Sudan, which has the frequent movement of people and goods across the borders with Uganda. 

The government of South Sudan needs to improve its security at the borders with Uganda to avoid the infiltration of such groups into the country despite the fact we do not consider ourselves as an enemy of any country around the world and believe that we are innocent.

Criminals always do not distinguish whether you are guilty or not. But once you fall into their traps, they will not spare you and it is important to ensure our borders especially the Nimule which is the main entry point into the country is safe.

The increasing rate of terrorism in Uganda is posing a bigger threat within the East African region given the fact it has not been a common phenomenon. This makes countries like South Sudan less prepared to launch counter-terrorism and you doubt whether the country’s police unit has an anti-terrorism unit. This is because we often look at it as something that is far from us but most countries around the world have a police anti-terrorism

unit.

It is time that we heighten our security surveillance along our borders and ensure that we have a police unit to combat terror.