In a dramatic escalation of political tensions in Uganda, armed security operatives on Monday morning raided the Wakaliga home of prominent human rights lawyer and former Kampala Lord Mayor, Advocate Erias Lukwago, violently arresting him just hours after he revealed difficulties in serving court process to the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
The high-profile arrest has sent shockwaves through the country’s political landscape, drawing fierce and unified condemnation from across the opposition divide. Critics have roundly described the incident as a state-sponsored abduction aimed at intimidating legal professionals and disrupting the legal defense of veteran opposition leader, Dr Kizza Besigye.
The operation, which unfolded at approximately 10am, occurred shortly after Lukwago had concluded a press briefing at his residence. According to his wife, Nalongo Zawedde Lubwama Lukwago, security personnel wearing uniforms belonging to the elite Special Forces Command (SFC) scaled the perimeter wall to gain entry into the compound.
“I heard someone knocking on the door and thought it was one of our children,” a visibly shaken Ms Lukwago told journalists. “When I opened, I saw men in military uniform entering. They searched everywhere for him. He was in the bedroom where they picked him from. They were so many.”
Ms Lukwago further alleged that a plainclothes operative, suspected to be the commander of the unit, assaulted her when she attempted to intercede.
“One of them grabbed my arm and twisted it, then kicked my legs, causing me to fall to the ground. They pinned me down,” she recounted, drawing parallels between the current political environment and Uganda’s darkest historical eras. “We used to just read about such violent acts committed during Idi Amin’s regime in the newspapers, but I think this is Amin’s regime regenerated through violence. If he had committed any crime, why couldn’t they just ask him to report to the police instead of coming home to break our doors and walls?”
Mr Lukwago’s arrest comes on the heels of intense legal maneuvering surrounding Dr Besigye, who is currently facing treason-related charges in a civilian court following his high-profile repatriation from Nairobi, Kenya, on November 2024.
Lukwago is a core member of the legal team representing the four-time presidential candidate.
Just hours before his arrest, Lukwago informed the press that his team was actively struggling to serve Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba with a human rights enforcement lawsuit filed by Besigye. The suit stems from allegations that Gen Muhoozi made explicit death threats against the jailed opposition leader.
“We are required to serve him, but where to find him is still a struggle. His office where he sits is not known,” Lukwago had stated earlier on Monday morning. “Muhoozi’s handlers tried to tell us to serve the Attorney General, but we told them this is a case against Gen Muhoozi as a person for issuing death threats and saying he had already identified a tree on which to hang Dr Besigye.”
The legal friction intensified following public statements attributed to Gen Muhoozi on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), where the CDF aggressively doubled down on his hostility toward Besigye and his legal representation.
“Let me say it again! I will HANG Kizza Besigye the first chance I get to do it! He wanted to kill my father and he will not escape the punishment that he richly deserves!” a post from Gen Muhoozi’s account read, explicitly warning Lukwago and other intermediaries against attempting service. “Advise Lukwago to learn from you. He has been fighting me with Besigye for many decades. We are going to finish it now.”
Following the raid, Gen Muhoozi posted an image appearing to depict a blindfolded Lukwago at an undisclosed location, alongside captions claiming the lawyer was under detention learning Kiswahili.
The incident has triggered a wave of outrage from top opposition figures, who view the state’s actions as an overt declaration of lawlessness.
From self-imposed exile, the President of the National Unity Platform (NUP), Mr Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, issued a scathing statement condemning the state’s tactics and calling on citizens to challenge the regime’s actions.
“Just learnt of the violent abduction, this morning, of former Kampala Lord Mayor, Advocate Erias Lukwago, as he prepared to serve Court Summons upon Museveni’s son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba,” Bobi Wine stated. “On Muhoozi’s orders, military men have raided and abducted Lukwago from his home… I call upon all of us to REJECT and RESIST this brazen impunity. UGANDA WILL BE FREE!”
NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya echoed these sentiments, labelling the operation “absurd” and demanding condemnation from “all people of good conscience.”
In Parliament, the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Joel Ssenyonyi, offered a grim but defiant outlook, stating, “It’s always darkest before the dawn. This madness shall end!”
Concurrently, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) Vice Chairperson Robert Centenary characterized the raid as a direct assault on both the independence of the judiciary and fundamental constitutional freedoms.
“This is politically motivated because the trial of our founding president, Dr Kizza Besigye, was meant to have commenced last week if the judiciary had not exposed its incompetencies,” Centenary argued, referencing recent procedural delays and state witness-protection disputes in the High Court. “Government may not be comfortable that it is going to be exposed more. Stop intimidating the lawyers. Stop intimidating the suspects. Let the law lead the entire process.”
Legal experts and colleagues of Lukwago have expressed deep concern over the safety of the former Lord Mayor, citing past instances where state detainees were subjected to severe physical abuse.
Speaking to the media, Member of Parliament and prominent defense lawyer Medard Lubega Sseggona noted that while the exact motives remain unconfirmed by formal police communication, the timing strongly points toward political persecution linked to Lukwago’s professional duties.
“We could speculate that it could relate to his professional practice as a lawyer,” Sseggona said, referencing the human rights enforcement case currently pending before the High Court. Commenting on the digital posts allegedly shared by the CDF, Sseggona added, “You remember when he undertook-he promised to send us photographs of Kakwenza under torture, and he delivered on that promise. He might deliver on this as well. So I can only encourage people to remain firm in things they believe in.”
By press time, neither the Uganda Police Force nor the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) had issued an official statement regarding Lukwago’s whereabouts, the legal basis for his detention, or the specific security agency holding him.