Ugandan opposition leaders issue 48-hour ultimatum for Besigye’s release
Bobi Wine further intensified fears over Besigye’s health, warning that his condition is deteriorating rapidly.
A coalition of Uganda’s top opposition figures, led by National Unity Platform (NUP) president Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, has issued a 48-hour ultimatum to President Yoweri Museveni, demanding the immediate release of Dr Kizza Besigye and other political prisoners.
The announcement came during a joint press briefing at the NUP headquarters in Kampala, where opposition figures from various parties stood in a rare show of unity against the government’s alleged crackdown on political dissent.
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“We are gravely concerned with the situation of Dr Besigye and other political prisoners who are still being illegally held in prison even after the Supreme Court pronouncement,” Bobi Wine said.
On Monday, protestors demonstrated in Kampala and other parts of Uganda as they called for the release of Besigye and his aide Obeid Lutale. Both were arrested on security-related charges and have been detained for nearly three months.
Besigye, who has run for president against long-serving leader Museveni four times, has been in detention since he was dramatically abducted in Kenya in November and taken back to Uganda to face a military trial.
The case took a dramatic turn on January 31, when the Supreme Court ruled against the trial of civilians in military courts, raising legal concerns over their continued detention.
Bobi Wine further intensified fears over Besigye’s health, warning that his condition is deteriorating rapidly.
“This man is actually dying. He cannot leave his bed,” he told journalists after visiting Besigye in prison on Monday. "Besigye collapsed earlier in the morning during his relocation."
Also present at the press briefing were former army commander Maj Gen (Rtd) Mugisha Muntu of the Alliance for National Transformation (ANT), Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) leader Jimmy Akena, and civil society activists, all reinforcing the call for immediate action.
The opposition warned that failure to meet their demands within the given timeframe would prompt further action.
“Together, we are issuing a 48-hour ultimatum to the regime to release Dr Besigye and all prisoners of political conscience, or else we shall announce a series of national actions for people to rise and end this impunity,” Bobi Wine declared.
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