Uganda opposition figure seized by soldiers as army chief vows ‘hurt and pain’

KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — An opposition figure in Uganda was detained Monday on the orders of the army chief, whose increased role in his father’s administration has worried opposition and human rights defenders.

Erias Lukwago was taken from his house by armed soldiers after he had sought to serve Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who is army chief and the president’s son, with court papers related to Kainerugaba’s threats against another opposition figure, according to Lukwago’s party. Kainerugaba confirmed the arrest on his social media and threatened to inflict “hurt and pain” against him.

Lukwago is a former mayor of the Ugandan capital of Kampala and the president of the People’s Front for Freedom opposition group. He is the attorney for Kizza Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate who faces treason charges in a criminal case that his supporters see as politically motivated.

Kainerugaba, the eldest son of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, is an increasingly controversial figure in national politics. He has posted offensive tweets over the years and asserted that he will succeed his father in the presidency. This possibility has seemed increasingly likely as his 81-year-old father was sworn in for a seventh term in May and Kainerugaba has emerged as de facto ruler.

The army chief said on social platform X that Lukwago had crossed the line in pursuing a case against him and that he was holding him.

“This fool will learn the lesson he has been begging for,” he said. He later posted photos of a blindfolded Lukwago appearing to beg for mercy.

Before his arrest, Lukwago told reporters he had been trying to hold Kainerugaba accountable for his alleged role in the violation of Besigye’s rights — including his abduction in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, in November 2024 and his subsequent jailing without bail in Uganda. Kainerugaba has threatened to hang Besigye, accusing him of plotting to kill Museveni.

The Uganda Law Society demanded Lukwago’s immediate release, saying his arrest was contemptuous of court processes. His wife Zawedde Lukwago told reporters that her husband’s arrest evoked the dictatorship of Idi Amin, whose rule in Uganda in the 1970s resulted in between 100,000 and 500,000 people killed according to Human Rights Watch.

“If he thinks he will be our next leader and will rule us like this, already we are saying no,” she said, referring to Kainerugaba.

Museveni has ruled Uganda since 1986.

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