Bobi Wine Calls for Pressure on Government, Accuses Regime of Persecuting Besigye
National Unity Platform (NUP) president, Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, has urged Ugandans to continue exerting pressure on the government, stating that what is happening to Dr. Kizza Besigye, is not prosecution but persecution.
Kyagulanyi made the remarks after the High Court Civil Division heard a habeas corpus application for Dr. Besigye and his aide, Hajj Obeid Lutale.
“I implore the people of Uganda to continue exerting pressure because the regime can only act under pressure,” Kyagulanyi said.
He accused the government of using prosecution as a cover to persecute opposition figures.
The High Court has ordered Dr. Besigye and Lutale back to prison, pending a judge’s ruling scheduled for next Tuesday.
Kyagulanyi criticized the presiding judge, accusing him of bias and negligence in handling politically sensitive cases.
“You notice this is the same judge who previously refused to send him [Besigye] to the ICU when he needed urgent medical attention. The same judge who denied him bail at a critical time. Now, he sends them back to prison instead of hospital. This is a regime persecuting Dr. Besigye and other political prisoners under the guise of prosecution,” he said.
The NUP leader further accused the government of endangering Besigye’s life.
“We gave the regime 48 hours to release Dr. Besigye because we want him alive. They are trying to kill him, and everyone can see that,”he said.
Kyagulanyi also announced that NUP would hold national prayers for Dr. Besigye and other political prisoners.
“We are not going to stop. We call upon all Ugandans, here and abroad, and our brothers and sisters across East Africa to keep up the pressure. Pressure is the only thing that works with this regime.”
On January 31, the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional for civilians to be tried in military courts.
Dr. Besigye’s health has reportedly deteriorated due to a prolonged hunger strike.
On Sunday, he was taken to a private clinic in Bugolobi for medical tests but was later returned to prison.
Besigye was abducted from Nairobi, Kenya, in November and smuggled back to Uganda.
He was subsequently arraigned before the General Court Martial in Makindye, Kampala, alongside his aide, Mr Lutale, on charges of illegal possession of firearms.
The two appeared before the High Court Civil Division in Kampala on Wednesday, seeking release through a habeas corpus application.
They have been on remand since November, following charges of security-related offenses and treachery at the General Court Martial.
However, after the Supreme Court ruling last month halting the trial of civilians in military courts, Besigye’s legal team filed the habeas corpus application.
Judge Douglas Singiza directed prison authorities to return Besigye and Lutale to custody and adjourned the session for further proceedings.
