Muwanga Kivumbi Tortured Daily and Needs Urgent Medical Attention — NUP Bosses

Former Butambala MP and National Unity Platform (NUP) Deputy President for Buganda Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi has revealed that he endured daily torture and sustained multiple injuries during nearly three weeks of incommunicado detention, according to NUP leaders who are now demanding urgent medical attention for the opposition politician.

Kivumbi resurfaced on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, after spending close to three weeks missing from public view, only to appear before the Butambala Magistrates’ Court where he was charged with inciting violence and managing an unlawful society before being remanded until August 11.

The former legislator had not been seen since around July 9–10, shortly after the International Crimes Division of the High Court granted him bail in a terrorism-related case arising from alleged violence in Butambala following the January 2026 general elections.

His disappearance triggered alarm among his family, lawyers and NUP leaders, who accused security agencies of abducting him. The Uganda Police Force and the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF), however, filed affidavits before court denying knowledge of his whereabouts or holding him in custody.

NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya said Kivumbi’s return had exposed the extent of his suffering, claiming the former MP had been subjected to severe torture during his detention.

“Despite being subjected to incredible torture and in need of urgent medical attention, Hon. Muwanga Kivumbi was this afternoon charged with inciting violence and managing an unlawful society, and remanded till the 11th of August when the matter will come up again for the state to respond to his bail application,” Rubongoya said.

“We’re told he’s being taken to Kitalya Prison. Very sad times,” he added.

The NUP secretary general said the circumstances surrounding Kivumbi’s reappearance raised further questions, especially after security agencies had denied having any information about him.

On his part, NUP president Robert Kyagulanyi, commonly known as Bobi Wine, said Kivumbi had disclosed that he suffered daily torture while in detention and sustained several injuries.

“Twenty days after his televised abduction and subsequent disappearance, Hon. Muwanga Kivumbi resurfaced today at the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Butambala. He has revealed that throughout his illegal detention, he endured daily torture and sustained multiple injuries,” Bobi Wine said.

According to Bobi Wine, security agencies only produced Kivumbi in court after previously denying knowledge of his whereabouts.

“Until today when its JATT security operatives drove Hon. Kivumbi to Court, the regime had denied knowledge of his whereabouts and even filed affidavits in court to the same effect!” he said.

Kivumbi’s lawyers and NUP officials had earlier filed a habeas corpus application at the High Court seeking orders compelling security agencies to produce him after his disappearance.

The High Court had directed investigations into his whereabouts, with a further hearing on the matter scheduled for Wednesday. However, the legal battle shifted after Kivumbi was suddenly brought before the Butambala Magistrates’ Court and charged.

According to NUP officials, Kivumbi was first dumped at Nateete Police Station before being transferred to court. Rubongoya said party lawyers rushed to the police station but were initially denied access to their client.

Kivumbi was later produced before court under heavy security deployment, where prosecutors preferred charges of incitement to violence and managing an unlawful society.

Leader of the Opposition Joel Ssenyonyi appeared in court and stood surety for Kivumbi during the proceedings.

After the hearing, court remanded Kivumbi until August 11, 2026. His lawyer, Medard Lubega Sseggona, said the magistrate did not specify the prison facility where Kivumbi would be taken following the remand order.

Supporters who gathered outside the courthouse demanded answers over Kivumbi’s disappearance and the circumstances under which he was brought back into public view.

NUP leaders said they remain concerned about Kivumbi’s health condition and are calling for immediate medical attention as he begins his remand period.

The party has also continued to demand accountability over what it describes as an enforced disappearance, arguing that the episode raises broader concerns about the treatment of opposition figures and government critics.

Kivumbi, a former Butambala County MP, remains one of NUP’s senior leaders and currently serves as the party’s Deputy President for Buganda.

His next court appearance is scheduled for August 11, when the state is expected to respond to his bail application.

Bobi Wine has previously claimed that Muwanga Kivumbi had been tortured at a military facility in Kasenyi, even as both UPDF and police insisted that they did not have him. (See Details Here, There and Over There).