In a concerning development, Muwanga Kivumbi, a prominent Ugandan lawmaker and close ally of opposition leader Bobi Wine, has been detained by the police for his alleged role in election-related violence last week. The arrest comes amid heightened tensions following the re-election of President Yoweri Museveni for a seventh term.
Kivumbi, the deputy leader of Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) party, is accused of organizing attacks on a police station and a vote-tallying centre after the party’s electoral defeat. The police have claimed that seven people were killed in the incidents, but Kivumbi has provided a different account, stating that 10 people were killed at his home as they waited for the parliamentary election results.
The Uganda Police Force has stated that Kivumbi will be “arraigned before court in due course” and that his arrest is “in connection with recent incidents of political violence.” This development follows a period of heightened tensions in the country, with Bobi Wine, Museveni’s closest challenger, denouncing the election results as “fake” and alleging “silent massacres” and a crackdown on political activists.
During his victory speech, Museveni warned opposition figures, including Kivumbi, of coordinated plans to attack polling stations. The president has claimed that seven people were shot dead by police after groups of alleged opposition supporters, armed with machetes, attempted to carry out violent attacks in Butambala district outside the capital, Kampala.
The arrest of Kivumbi is the latest in a series of actions taken by the Ugandan authorities against opposition figures and their supporters. Since the election, dozens of youth have reportedly been arrested on various charges linked to election-related incidents in Kampala.
Uganda’s political landscape has been marked by a long-standing power struggle between Museveni’s government and the opposition, led by figures like Bobi Wine. The country has not witnessed a peaceful transfer of presidential power since independence, and Museveni’s continued grip on power has been a source of concern for many.
As the situation in Uganda continues to unfold, the international community will be closely watching the developments and their impact on the country’s democratic processes and stability.
