DEFENCE: Museveni gov’t finally responds to Bobi Wine US ally Engel’s push for security officials’ sanctions, aid freezing

President Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni’s NRM government, through its foreign affairs mimister Sam Kutesa, has offered a lengthy response to claims by National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine’s US ally Eliot Engel’s calls for sanctions against top security commanders and freezing of aid.

On December 09, Engel, the chairman of the foreign affairs in the US house of representatives, wrote to secretary of state Mike Pompeo and his treasury counterpart Steven Mnuchin, claiming Kampala had taken a nosedive to authoritanism.

In a response sent to Engel on December 21, minister Kutesa tells Engel “the concerns and allegations as well as the request for action and other issues contained in your letter are of utmost surprise and of grave concern to my Government.”

This is the first official reply to Engel’s letter. Recently, Museveni told off Bobi Wine’s US backers pushing for sanctions.

The reply letter tackles each allegation as put forward by Engel: alleged attacks on independent media, banning of political rallies and concerts; arrest, detention and detention of individuals who dare challenge the president or the ruling party and government; and extrajudicial killings by security forces.

Engel had also made allegations on Kasese Killings of 2016, failure to investigate human rights abuses, 2017 raid on parliament during the age limit debate, and OTT tax.

Here is the full response: