(Kampala) – Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye has addressed the media following his recent arrest in Nairobi, revealing he has not communicated with anyone, including his lawyers, since the incident.
Ugandan opposition leader Dr. Kizza Besigye has broken his silence following his arrest in Nairobi on November 16. Speaking to the media on Wednesday from an undisclosed location in Uganda, Besigye stated that he has been unable to contact anyone, including his legal team, since his detention.
“I have not been in contact with any person since I was arrested in Nairobi, so I could not have any brief with any lawyers. I will be having my own lawyers, but I haven’t briefed them,” Besigye said.
The circumstances surrounding his arrest remain unclear. NARC-Kenya party leader Martha Karua shared details about the events leading up to Besigye’s disappearance. Karua revealed that Besigye had arrived in Nairobi on Saturday, November 16, and checked into Waridi Paradise Hotel and Suites. Later that day, he left the hotel in a taxi for a meeting at 108 Riverside Apartments, Apartment No. C1102.
According to Karua, the taxi driver who dropped Besigye off waited in the building’s basement parking from 4:30 p.m. until 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning, but received no communication from Besigye and eventually left.
“Kizza Besigye was scheduled to attend and speak at my book launch on Sunday, November 17, but he never showed up. We suspect Dr. Besigye may have been abducted after being dropped at the Riverside Apartments, likely by Ugandan authorities in cooperation with Kenyan officials,” Karua alleged.
On Wednesday, Besigye’s wife, Winnie Byanyima, made a public plea for her husband’s release. “I request the government of Uganda to release my husband Dr. Kizza Besigye from where he is being held immediately. He was kidnapped last Saturday while in Nairobi for Martha Karua’s book launch,” Byanyima stated.
The case has drawn regional and international attention, with questions being raised about potential cross-border cooperation in Besigye’s detention.