NUP election boss recounts harrowing detention, interrogation by CMI operatives

Kampala, (UG):- The Chairperson of the National Unity Platform (NUP) Election Management Committee, Mercy Walukamba has spoken out about her harrowing experience following her release from the alleged abductors on Friday morning.

Walukamba, along with three other NUP members; Alex Rovans Lwanyaga, Rahma Juma, and Eddie Kayabura were taken at gunpoint by unidentified security operatives on Tuesday evening but the election boss was released on Friday morning alongside Rahma Juma.

Recounting her ordeal, Ms Walukamba revealed that they were intercepted in Mpigi, blindfolded by their captors and driven to an unknown location where they were interrogated on a number of issues, including NUP plans and activities ahead of the Kawempe North by-election and the 2026 general election.

“During interrogations, they asked me why I joined NUP, what plans we have in the Kawempe North by-election, and why we chose Elias Nalukoola as our party flag bearer. They also asked me about our plans for the 2026 general elections and the sources of funding for our party activities,” she narrated.

“They told us that they are ready to crash NUP within one month,” Ms Walukamba added.

Another released member of the committee, Ms Rahma Juma, who was also subjected to questioning, recounted how she was interrogated about her messages, her dual roles in the party, and the activities of NUP’s foot soldiers.

“They asked why I am on the committee of women and at the same time on the Election Management Committee, and why [the party president Robert] Kyagulanyi trusted me as a member of both committees,” She said.

Ms Juma further disclosed that the interrogators were keen to know about the party’s mobilization strategies, particularly its street supporters known for donning red overalls and berets.

“They asked me, ‘You are going to demonstrate, to burn property where do you train with the foot soldiers? Do you also go to the leadership school in Kamwokya?’ They asked almost everything according to my messages on my phone,” she recounted.

In a related development, Fred Nyanzi, the elder brother of NUP leader Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine, was also released on Friday morning after spending four days under the Chief of Military Intelligence (CMI) detention where he was allegedly subjected to torture before being dropped near his home.

NUP’s legal representative, George Musisi, stated on Saturday that several party officials and supporters have been abducted by security operatives over the past two weeks. “We are yet to find out where most of them are being held. However, we have information that some of them are being held by the Chief of Military Intelligence (CMI),” Musisi said.

The abductions and interrogations come in the wake of a security raid at NUP headquarters in Makerere Kavule and the party’s leadership institute in Kamwokya on Friday afternoon.

The overnight search, conducted by the police and military, extended into Saturday, February 22, further heightening tensions between the opposition party and the state.

NUP has consistently accused the government of using force and intimidation to suppress its activities, with party officials decrying the continued persecution of its members. The latest incidents have only reinforced claims of systematic repression against the opposition ahead of the 2026 elections.