Prime Cabinet secretary Musalia Mudavadi has opened up on
the arrest of Ugandan opposition politician Kizza Besigye in Nairobi and taken
to Uganda.
Speaking on Citizen TV, Mudavadi said Besigye had to go
because of various issues arising from his visit to Kenya, which was ‘unclear’.
He said the decision was more of a cooperation between
Kenyan and Ugandan authorities.
The Foreign Affairs Minister, however, noted that had
Besigye sought asylum, the situation would have been very different.
He declined to make any further comments on the issues
surrounding Besigye’s arrest as he is under the custody of his country.
“I don’t take responsibility, and Kenya cannot take
responsibility because that is a process that is going on in Uganda and the
authority of the government of Uganda. I think it’s best left as it is. He came
here, and there were issues, and he had to go. The manner in which he had come to
Kenya was not quite clear, and at that time, him being here and certain issues were beginning to evolve. He is now in the custody of his nation.
“Kenya cooperated with the Ugandan authorities. If there are
issues, it is a friendly nation because He (Kizza Besigye) was not seeking
asylum; he had not come to say that he was seeking asylum. Had he said that,
maybe the treatment would have been different,” Mudavadi said.
Besigye, known for his long opposition to Ugandan President
Yoweri Museveni, was briefly in Kenya before his arrest and return to Uganda in
November 2024.
His arrest sparked
public debate and drew criticism from human rights groups and opposition
supporters.
The government has maintained that its actions followed
diplomatic obligations and national interest, a point Mudavadi reinforced
during the interview.
In February this year, a Ugandan court charged Besigye with
treason and denied his lawyers’ requests to transfer him to a hospital for
treatment after a hunger strike left him weak.
The 68-year-old opposition figure appeared frail and was
seen in a wheelchair during the court appearance.
Besigye, 68, was charged in a military court with possession
of pistols and attempting to purchase weapons abroad – accusations which he
denies.
Uganda’s Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional for
military courts to try civilians, ordering the transfer of all such cases to
civilian courts.
The move angered President Museveni, who dismissed it as
“a wrong decision” and vowed to challenge the ruling.