Victims narrate ordeal after release from CMI detention
Walukamba, who was released two days later alongside Juma, recounted that interrogators questioned her about her links to NUP, the party’s plans for the Kawempe North by-election, and strategies for the 2026 general elections.
National Unity Platform (NUP) officials who had been missing for nearly two weeks have narrated their ordeal following their release from the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) facility in Mbuya, where they claim to have endured inhumane treatment.
Speaking at a press briefing on Monday at the NUP headquarters in Makerere Kavule, party president Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, said the victims came straight to the office after their release and detailed their harrowing experience.
“One of them managed to smuggle out the blindfold used by their captors to disorient detainees,” Kyagulanyi revealed. “Upon abduction, they are blindfolded, forced to make several 360-degree turns to cause dizziness and confusion so they cannot identify their captors or location.”
The release comes amid a surge in abductions of NUP officials, including Kyagulanyi’s brother, Fred Nyanzi Ssentamu, who was taken by heavily armed men on February 17 and dumped at his home four days later.
On February 18, four members of NUP’s electoral commission—Mercy Walukamba, Rovans Alex Lwanyaga, Rahma Juma, and Eddie Kayabura—were reportedly abducted at gunpoint in Lungala, Mpigi District, while returning from a burial in Rakai.
Walukamba, who was released two days later alongside Juma, recounted that interrogators questioned her about her links to NUP, the party’s plans for the Kawempe North by-election, and strategies for the 2026 general elections. “They told us they are ready to crush NUP within a month,” she said.
Juma also described intense questioning about NUP mobilizers, commonly known as “foot soldiers.” “They asked me, ‘You are going to demonstrate and burn property—where do you train with the foot soldiers? Do you also go to the leadership school in Kamwokya?’” she recalled.
The abductions coincide with recent security raids on NUP premises, where operatives searched the party headquarters in Kavule and its leadership school in Kamwokya. Police claimed to have recovered exhibits to be used as evidence in court.
Kyagulanyi, a former presidential contender and fierce critic of President Museveni’s government, condemned the raids, alleging that security operatives stole computers, valuable documents, money, and branded materials.
He further claimed that some of the stolen electronic devices were traced to the Police Headquarters in Naguru and the CMI offices in Mbuya, based on GPS data. “There are also attempts to hack into some of these devices. Thankfully, our IT teams are working to protect our data,” he said.
NUP has consistently accused the government of using intimidation tactics to suppress opposition activities, particularly as the 2026 general elections approach.
