Winnie Byanyima, the Executive Director of UNAIDS has accused the state operatives of framing opposition leader Dr. Kizza Besigye to be in possession of firearms.
The allegations stem from an incident involving a British operative who allegedly attempted to plant firearms on Besigye to implicate him in criminal activities.
“Unknown to Dr. Besigye, the British man was a paid operative who tried to plant guns on him. He facilitated the abduction and then left the room, leaving behind his pistols,” Byanyima revealed.
“He was not ‘arrested’! We will expose him and the Ugandan operatives who abducted Dr. Besigye and Haji Obeid. We will expose their wicked plot,” she added.
Byanyima said that the plot to frame Besigye is part of a broader effort to silence dissent and weaken Uganda’s political opposition. She emphasized that the government has a history of framing Besigye with false charges, only for the courts to ultimately clear his name.
“Every time the government has framed Dr. Besigye, the courts have upheld his innocence. These latest false criminal allegations against Dr. Besigye will be exposed and dismissed in a civilian court,” she said, underscoring her confidence in the judiciary.
Byanyima also condemned the government’s apparent intention to try Besigye, a civilian, in a military court, a move she described as a “travesty of justice.”
She said, “Trying Dr. Besigye, an unarmed civilian, in a military court will be a travesty of justice!” she declared, calling on Ugandans and the international community to stand in solidarity with the veteran opposition leader. “Stand with Kizza Besigye.”
Dr. Kizza Besigye, a former presidential candidate and leader of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), has faced numerous arrests and accusations over the years often related to his political mobilization efforts.
According to Byanyima, fundraising for political activities is a legitimate and necessary function of democratic institutions.
“Dr. Besigye always fundraises for political mobilization work by his party. Parties are democratic institutions and have local support and foreign relationships,” she noted, defending the opposition leader’s actions.
Besigye and his comrade Hajji Obeid Lutale were kidnapped in Kenya and drove to Uganda where he went on to be charged with cases of possession of a pistol and holding meeting in Geneva in Switzerland, Athens and Nairobi in Kenya aimed at soliciting for logistical support and identifying military targets in Uganda with intent to prejudice the security of the Defence Forces.
The duo was remanded to Luzira until December 9, 2024.
Byanyima has repeatedly revealed that Besigye has not owned a gun in the last 20 years.
