President Yoweri Museveni has reportedly handed Gen Caleb Akandwanaho aka Gen Salim Saleh a key role in determining the fate of opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye, according to Chief of Defence Forces Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
Muhoozi, who is Museveni’s son, made the revelation while discussing Besigye’s situation, suggesting that any attempt by the former presidential candidate to seek forgiveness should be directed to Saleh.
The statement places Saleh, Museveni’s younger brother and a long-serving senior military figure, at the centre of a potentially significant political and legal matter involving Besigye.
“Dr. KB [Kizza Besigye] will be handled by Afande Saleh,” Muhoozi said.
He added that Besigye would have to approach Saleh himself if he wanted forgiveness.
“If he wants forgiveness he should talk to Afande Saleh,” Muhoozi said, before making it clear that Saleh was acting with authority from Museveni.
“Mzee, has given Afande SS [Salim Saleh] those powers,” he said.
The remarks come at a particularly sensitive moment for Besigye, who has spent years as one of Museveni’s most prominent political challengers and has repeatedly faced arrest, prosecution and other legal battles.
Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate and former ally-turned-rival of Museveni, has remained a central figure in Uganda’s opposition politics despite years of state pressure.
Muhoozi’s latest comments could therefore signal that Saleh has been entrusted with a political role in determining whether a possible reconciliation or forgiveness involving Besigye can take place.
The reference to Museveni giving Saleh “those powers” also raises questions about the nature and extent of the authority being exercised by the retired general, particularly in relation to a high-profile opposition figure whose political confrontation with the Museveni government has stretched over decades.
The development comes amid renewed attention to the fate of senior political figures who have fallen out with the government, with questions surrounding whether presidential intervention could bring an end to some of the long-running cases.
For Besigye, however, Muhoozi’s statement appears to put Saleh at the centre of any potential path toward forgiveness.
Rather than suggesting that Besigye’s fate will be decided solely through the formal judicial process, the CDF’s remarks point to a parallel political channel in which Saleh could play a decisive role
Besigye remains in a police cell as a recent medical report detailed how his health remains worrying. (See Details Here).
Meanwhile, the anti-Besigye Mzungu state witness in the treason case says his recordings were seized by Kenyan Police while his available Videos and audios are painful to watch and listen to. (See Details Here).
