Audio By Carbonatix
Ugandan police have detained a lawmaker, and a close ally of opposition leader Bobi Wine, for his alleged role in election-related violence last week.
Muwanga Kivumbi, a deputy leader of Wine's National Unity Platform (NUP), is accused of organising attacks on a police station and a vote-tallying centre after their electoral loss, which the party denies.
The police have said that seven people were killed in the incident, but the politician has given a different account, saying that 10 people were killed at his home as they waited for the parliamentary election results.
The Uganda Police Force said in a post on X on Thursday that Kivumbi would be "arraigned before court in due course".
"His arrest is in connection with recent incidents of political violence," it added.
Kivumbi's arrest follows tensions after last week's elections in which President Yoweri Museveni was re-elected for a seventh term.
During his victory speech over the weekend, Museveni warned opposition figures, including Kivumbi, of coordinated plans to attack polling stations.
He said 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.
Wine, Museveni's closest challenger and who is in hiding after fleeing a raid on his house after the elections, has denounced the results as "fake", citing electoral fraud.
He has also alleged that there was "silent massacre" under way and a crackdown targeting political activists.
On Tuesday, he posted on social media that more than 100 people had been killed in election violence, without stating evidence.
This came after Uganda's army chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who is also Museveni's son and his potential successor, said the security forces had killed 22 opposition supporters during poll-related violence.
Since the election, Ugandan authorities have reportedly arrested dozens of youths on various charges linked to election-related incidents in Kampala.
Museveni first came to power as a rebel leader in 1986. He will have served for 45 years when the next term ends in 2031.
Uganda has not witnessed a peaceful transfer of presidential power since independence.
Latest Stories
-
Ghana’s energy reset must move from financial rescue to productive investment
4 minutes -
Galamsey fight: We have partly succeeded – Mustapha Gbande
12 minutes -
Freedom without restraint is not freedom
14 minutes -
Early warning must be matched by early action to prevent atrocity crimes in Africa – William Nyarko
17 minutes -
Homeless woman found dead at Koforidua Jackson Park
20 minutes -
Heaps of refuse, choked drains linger in parts of Accra nearly 2 weeks after nationwide clean-up
29 minutes -
Ofori-Atta case exposes deep split between US immigration rulings and Ghanaian prosecution
39 minutes -
Fisheries Ministry details reforms, marine protection and aquaculture plans for 2026
44 minutes -
US donates military equipment to Ghana Armed Forces to boost defence capabilities
50 minutes -
Accra Reset aims to bridge gap between health commitments and service delivery – Nana Oye Bampoe Addo
51 minutes -
Bagbin hails NIB turnaround as book on bank’s recovery is launched
53 minutes -
Ghana Navy participates in African Maritime Forces Summit in Morocco
1 hour -
GNFS intensifies fire safety education in Eastern Region communities
1 hour -
BoG, GoldBod finalising new financing model to reduce pressure on central bank balance sheet
1 hour -
Michelin-starred restaurateur faces jail for using ants as dessert garnish
1 hour