On August 1, 2024, Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Semujju Nganda and Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka engaged in a heated debate in Parliament over the arrest of 36 Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) members in Kisumu, Kenya. The arrested individuals, who include 34 men and two women, were allegedly detained after traveling to Kenya between July 22 and 23, 2024, to receive what the government claims was terrorism training. The group has since been remanded to Luzira Prison.
Semujju, who has recently taken on a leadership role within the FDC’s Katonga faction, questioned the legitimacy of their arrest and subsequent repatriation by Uganda’s External Security Organization (ESO). He expressed concerns about the legal and diplomatic implications of the situation, emphasizing that one of the arrested individuals is a registered refugee in Kenya. Semujju questioned whether Uganda had the right to intervene in another country’s affairs without proper legal procedures, likening the situation to past conflicts with Rwanda over alleged abductions.
Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa also weighed in, asking the Leader of Government Business to clarify the government’s actions regarding what he described as the “kidnapping” of Ugandans.
Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka, however, denied claims of abduction and torture. He stated that the detained FDC members were charged and are currently before the court. Kiwanuka asserted that any allegations of mistreatment could be addressed through legal channels and that a case of torture could be used as a defense in court. His comments, however, sparked further criticism from Semujju, who compared the situation to abuses seen during the Idi Amin era. Semujju challenged the Attorney General to explain how the repatriation was conducted without proper legal documentation.
In response to the controversy, FDC’s founding President, Col. (rtd) Dr. Kizza Besigye, criticized the charges against the detained activists, calling them a continuation of physical torture and a misuse of the judicial system. Besigye, who has faced similar charges in the past, accused the government of systematically abusing the legal process.
