Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has banned opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, from participating in any future electoral processes, citing national security concerns.
Muhoozi said anyone declaring Bobi Wine as their political leader should be “annulled,” asserting his authority as Commander-in-Chief of the state.
In his X post on Thursday, Kainerugaba said his directives carry the full weight of state authority. “My orders stand with the force of the Commander-in-Chief of the State,” he said, adding, “From now on ANYONE who declares Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine as his political leader must be annulled.”
The army chief further declared that the ban would apply regardless of Kyagulanyi’s physical presence in the country.
“Whether Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu is in the country or not, I, as CDF, in the interests of national security and for the good of the commonwealth ban him from any further participation in the electoral exercises of Uganda,” Muhoozi said.
The ban comes as the Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine accuse the government of intensifying a crackdown on his political movement, claiming that several of his senior deputies have been abducted or detained as security pressure mounts against the opposition.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the National Unity Platform (NUP) leader said his home remains under siege, describing the situation as a sustained campaign of persecution targeting both himself and his party’s leadership.
“I am not free. My home is still under siege, and the criminal regime is trying to hunt me down,” Bobi Wine said, adding that three of his four deputy presidents are currently either missing or in detention.
According to the opposition leader, NUP’s Deputy President for Northern Uganda, Dr Lina Zedriga Waru, has been missing since January 15, when she was allegedly abducted from her home.
He further claimed that the party’s Deputy President for Western Uganda, Hon Jolly Jacklyn Tukamushaba, was abducted from Rukiga District a day earlier, on January 14, and her whereabouts remain unknown.
Bobi Wine also said the Deputy President for the Central Region, Hon Muwanga Kivumbi, was arrested on Thursday and is being held at Kira Division Police Station.
“My Deputy President for Central Region, Hon. Muwanga Kivumbi was today arrested and he’s being currently held at Kira Division Police,” he said.
The allegations come amid heightened political tensions in Uganda, where opposition figures have repeatedly accused security agencies of arbitrary arrests, abductions and intimidation, particularly during periods of increased political mobilisation.
The government has previously denied such claims, insisting that security operations are conducted within the law.
He added that the detention and disappearance of his deputies underscores what he views as shrinking political space and increasing repression.
Despite the developments, the opposition leader struck a defiant tone, urging his supporters to remain hopeful.
“As the persecution intensifies, may we remain rooted in hope and faith, that our struggle — the Ugandan struggle — will end in victory,” Bobi Wine said.
