The Opposition National Unity Platform (NUP) has defiantly declared that they will not halt their mobilization tour, in response to a directive from the police to cease their activities.
NUP Principal Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine argues that the police have no authority to grant or deny permission for public assemblies and that they were merely informing the police about their activities, as prescribed by the law. Wine insisted that they would not obey orders that lack a legal basis.
The police, in their statement issued by Deputy Inspector General Tumusiime Katsigazi, had banned NUP’s tours, claiming that the party had deviated from the agreed-upon terms set two weeks ago when the police allowed the activities to proceed.
Maj Gen Katsigazi expressed support for the right of individuals and groups to peacefully assemble and express their views on public policy matters. However, he emphasized that the NUP’s mobilization activities had consistently violated these guidelines under the police act , prompting the ban.
Speaking to journalists at his offices in Kampala on Thursday, Kyagulanyi accuses the Deputy IGP Maj. Gen Geoffrey Tumusiime Katsigazi of acting with bias by declaring them criminals without the courts of law doing so.
“The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Maj. Gen Geoffrey Tumusiime] Katsigazi’s choice of words to describe us clearly shows that he’s doing politics and not law enforcement. Words like mob mentality, bullying, him describing us like radicals clearly speaks to someone doing politics. He has turned himself into the prosecutor, investigator and judge. Its not for him to call us sectarian or Museveni defamors , if we have committed any crime, let him take us to court” he uttered
He explained that the ban is a state strategy to block their activities in the Kampala Metropolitan Areas.
“As soon as we announced our country-wide mobilization tour, they immediately started talking about terrorism. They were not talking about terrorism when Museveni’s son (Muhoozi Kainerugaba) or [Prime Minister, Robinah] Nabbanja were moving around. It’s clear to everyone that they intended to create fear in the population in order to find reason to block us from proceeding with our programme, especially here in the Kampala Metropolitan region,” he added
In his statement, Katsigazi said that the NUP’s mobilization tours had resulted in chaos in the areas where they were held, leading to public disorder, traffic jams, business disruption, property damage, and even fatal accidents.
“Wherever the meetings have happened, there has been public disorder, unnecessary traffic jams, loss of business, malicious damage to property, for instance in Mbarara City, their rowdy supporters vandalized a Toyota Hiace, under reg. no. UBD 251J, and traffic accidents, including a fatal one in Hoima City, on the 11.09.2023, where a one, Mugisa Norman died and 10 others got serious injuries, during the NUP convoy.”Kasigazi said
In response to these allegations, Bobi Wine challenged the police to take him to court if he had indeed broken any laws instead of acting as both the complainant and the judge.
He also refuted any claims that his life or the lives of his supporters were in danger, asserting that it was Museveni’s security forces who posed a threat.
“Our people have been peaceful, but the people blocking roads for hours it has been Museveni and his people. What happened in Hoima where one person died was purely an accident. So, the police should stop exercising double standards; they are scared because they are working for the regime. Our business is to remove the Museveni government because it’s illegitimate and we have never been shy of saying this, “ Kyagulanyi said.
Kyagulanyi said his party did not ask for permission to hold the rallies and that they only notified police. He says police have no mandate to make decisions for registered political parties and that claims about his life being in danger are just excuses to block the party’s countrywide tour.
The police’s statement accused Bobi Wine of using the mobilization tour to incite violence, promote sectarianism, make illegitimate calls for the removal of an elected government, and defame President Museveni.
NUP’s first phase of the “Wake Up Uganda” tour kicked off on August 28 and was concluded on Wednesday, September 13, 2023.
The police’s statement accused Bobi Wine of using the mobilization tour to incite violence, promote sectarianism, make illegitimate calls for the removal of an elected government, and defame President Museveni. However, Joel Ssenyonyi dismissed these claims as mere excuses by the government to hinder their activities and emphasized that NUP seeks regime change through legal means.
Ssenyonyi pointed out that the government underestimated their support and attempted to curtail their activities, but instead, they witnessed a growing number of supporters during their tours. NUP remains determined to continue their mobilization efforts, setting the stage for a potential showdown with the authorities as they assert their rights and their vision for Uganda’s future.
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