BUTAMBALA, Uganda — National Unity Platform (NUP) Deputy President Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi was on Wednesday charged before the Butambala Chief Magistrate’s Court with managing an unlawful society and inciting violence, hours after resurfacing from more than two weeks in undisclosed custody following his reported re-arrest by unidentified security operatives.
Kivumbi pleaded not guilty to both charges before the court and was remanded until August 11.
The charges arise from remarks prosecutors say he made on July 9, shortly after securing bail from the International Crimes Division of the High Court in a separate terrorism case.
According to the prosecution, Kivumbi delivered a speech to supporters gathered at his home in Butambala that formed the basis of the new criminal charges.
Hours after addressing the gathering, he reportedly disappeared after being re-arrested by unidentified operatives, triggering widespread concern from his family, lawyers and political party over his whereabouts.
His unexplained disappearance prompted his legal team to file a habeas corpus application in the High Court seeking orders compelling security agencies to produce him or disclose where he was being held.
Kivumbi resurfaced on Wednesday 29, July 2026 morning at Nateete Police Station before being transferred to Butambala, where he was formally charged.
Speaking after the court session, his lawyer, Medard Ssegona, said Kivumbi was unable to identify where he had been detained because he remained blindfolded throughout the period he was held.
“We have not been able to establish where he’s been all along because he himself doesn’t know,” Ssegona told reporters.
“He was blindfolded, taken and dumped in a place that he does not know, where he received more than a fair share of the beatings until he pleaded profusely after being hit on the head.”
Ssegona alleged that his client sustained head injuries during the detention and received only minimal medical treatment to stop the bleeding.
The defence lawyer declined to discuss the substance of the charges, saying his legal team would respond through the court process.
“Muwanga is charged with managing an unlawful society. The second offence is inciting violence. I will not discuss the technical intricacies of the particulars disclosed in the charge sheet,” he said.
Ssegona also criticised the court’s decision to remand Kivumbi despite seeking his release on bail.
He argued that Uganda’s Constitution protects personal liberty and that it is the prosecution—not the accused—that bears the responsibility of demonstrating why continued detention is necessary.
Also Read: NUP’s Muwanga Kivumbi resurfaces after two weeks in incommunicado detention
Kivumbi’s prosecution comes only hours after his unexpected reappearance ended weeks of uncertainty over his whereabouts, a development that is likely to intensify questions over the identity of those who detained him after security agencies previously denied holding him.
Neither the Uganda Police Force nor the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) had immediately commented on the allegations made by Kivumbi’s lawyers regarding his detention and alleged assault.
The case adds another chapter to the legal challenges facing the senior opposition leader, who is already battling terrorism-related charges before the International Crimes Division of the High Court.
His latest prosecution is also expected to fuel renewed debate over arrests, prolonged incommunicado detention and the treatment of opposition politicians in Uganda as political tensions continue to rise ahead of the 2026 general elections.
