Uganda: 36 opposition supporters denied bail

KAMPALA, Uganda

Over 36 supporters of Uganda’s main opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, have been denied bail on Monday.

They have been in prison on remand for over one month.

Some 126 political workers were arrested along with Bobi Wine on Dec. 30, 2020, on Kalangala island, where they had gone to attend a rally in connection with the presidential election campaign. They were accused of flouting the COVID-19 guidelines.

Bobi Wine was flown by an army helicopter to his home at Magere, while the rest were imprisoned in Masaka prison.

On Jan. 8, 2021, 49 of them were produced before an army court in Kampala and charged with illegal possession of gun magazines and ammunition. The suspects, including Bobi Wine’s chief bodyguard Eddie Mutwe and his singing partner Nubian Li, also appeared before the military court.

On Monday, the court denied bail to 36 accused, saying it had got information that they will continue “terrorism activities if granted bail.

Charles Masaba, a leader in Bobi Wine’s National Unity Platform, said: “Our supporters are being denied bail because President [Yoweri] Museveni instructed the court to do so. That is unfortunate.”

The East African country’s Electoral Commission on Jan. 16 announced Yoweri Museveni as the winner in the elections held on Jan. 14. Wine, who refused to concede defeat, challenged the results of the election in the country’s top court.