Heartbreaking Call: Sam Mugumya’s Mother Says She Fears Dying Without Seeing Her Son After 12 Years

The anguish surrounding the disappearance of Ugandan opposition activist Sam Mugumya has taken another emotional turn after activist Agather Atuhaire shared a deeply personal conversation with his elderly mother, Edinasi Katungwensi, revealing the pain of a parent who has waited 12 years without seeing or hearing from her son.

In a post shared on social media, Atuhaire recounted how a compassionate Ugandan anonymously sent her money to deliver to Katungwensi to help with her daily needs.

According to Atuhaire, the donor said the contribution was not meant to replace the loss of her son but was intended to ease the hardships she now faces.

“I know it can’t bring back her son but maybe it can buy her the salt or sugar that her son would have bought her,” the anonymous donor reportedly said.

Before forwarding the money, Atuhaire telephoned Katungwensi to check on her health and emotional well-being.

The conversation, she said, quickly laid bare the enormous burden the elderly mother continues to carry.

“The health at my age isn’t expected to get any better,” Katungwensi told her.

“In my case when you add the misery I have it gets worse. I struggle to eat. I struggle to sleep. I wonder if I will see my child before I die.”

She said the uncertainty surrounding her son’s fate has become unbearable.

“I have not seen him 12 years and it causes me so much pain that I will go to my grave without seeing him or knowing whether he’s even alive. Sometimes I have difficulties and I think if he was here he would help me with them.”

Atuhaire said she tried to reassure the grieving mother that she believed Mugumya was still alive and expressed hope that they would one day be reunited. She also informed her that a well-wisher had offered financial support to help ease some of her immediate struggles.

The news, she said, transformed the elderly woman’s mood.

“She lightened up. She said she was struggling but now she knows ‘God acts at the right moment.'”

After receiving the money, Katungwensi called back to express her gratitude to both Atuhaire and the anonymous donor, praying for abundant blessings upon the stranger whose generosity had offered her a rare moment of comfort amid years of uncertainty.

Mugumya’s ordeal has stretched across more than a decade. After spending years in prison in the Democratic Republic of Congo on espionage-related charges, he was eventually released and returned to Uganda. However, his freedom was short-lived. In 2025, he was arrested from a hotel in Mbarara by armed men, and his whereabouts remained unknown for months until a leaked video recently surfaced appearing to show him in a frail physical condition. (See Details Here).

His case continues to fuel calls from his family, lawyers and human rights activists for authorities to disclose his whereabouts, guarantee his safety and allow him access to medical care and his loved ones.