Bobi Wine, the head of the opposition in Uganda, was detained today as he was traveling back to his native country, a senior party official reported.
According to David Lewis Rubongoya, general secretary of Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP), “Our President (Bobi Wine) was picked up by regime operatives as soon as he landed at the airport,” on X, formerly Twitter.
A picture that appeared to show two men grabbing him by the arms on the tarmac of Entebbe International Airport was posted along with the article.
To welcome his return, Wine’s followers had intended to accompany him in large numbers to his house north of Kampala, but authorities had said that such gatherings were prohibited.
Due to concerns about public order, Ugandan police stated last month that they would forbid demonstrations across the nation organized by the National Unity Platform.
Wine, a former musician whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, is a well-known opponent of President Yoweri Museveni’s administration and has previously been the target of multiple arrests and allegations of human rights violations.
In 2021, he launched an unsuccessful run for the President against Museveni, who is in his sixth term as president.