KAMPALA, Uganda — Concerns over the deteriorating health condition of imprisoned Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye have escalated after he was transported overnight to a medical facility in the capital. His political party, the People’s Front for Freedom, issued an urgent statement Tuesday warning that Besigye’s health “has reached a critical and deteriorating state” while demanding immediate access for his personal physicians and family members.
The veteran politician, who previously served as Uganda’s primary opposition figure before the emergence of Bobi Wine, remains confined in a high-security Kampala prison awaiting trial on treason charges that his supporters claim are politically motivated. “It is a tragedy that a man who has dedicated his life to the health and freedom of others is being denied his own right to medical dignity,” the party’s statement asserted, holding “the regime and prison authorities fully accountable for his well-being.”
Contradicting these assessments, Uganda’s prison system spokesman Frank Baine characterized the medical visit as routine, stating: “It was a general checkup. This morning he was doing his exercises.”
This development occurs against the backdrop of Uganda’s contentious political landscape. President Yoweri Museveni, who has maintained power since 1986, recently secured re-election with 71.6% of the vote according to official results—figures immediately rejected by challenger Bobi Wine as fraudulent. The electoral process was marred by a multi-day internet blackout and malfunctioning biometric voting systems originally implemented to prevent electoral fraud.
Besigye, a physician and retired military colonel who once served as Museveni’s personal doctor, has evolved into one of the president’s most persistent critics. His current detention since November 2024 stems from allegations of plotting government overthrow. Museveni’s son, army chief General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has further accused Besigye of planning presidential assassination and previously suggested the opposition leader should face execution.
The case highlights growing concerns about Uganda’s political future, with many anticipating an unstable transition as Museveni, now 81, has systematically removed constitutional obstacles to his prolonged rule while potential successors remain uncertain within the ruling National Resistance Movement party.