The National Unity Platform (NUP)offices have been a scene of dramatic arrests and heavy deployment by the military and police operatives, since Monday morning.
This follows a frustrated press briefing organized by the party leadership head by Principal Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine. According to police, the party had invited supporters from all walks of life and pressure groups to join MPs and councilors in attending the press meeting that had been scheduled for 10am on Monday.
However, their plans hit a dead end as police and military cordoned off the offices as early as 4am in the morning. Mps who had already accessed the Kavule headquarter offices were locked inside while their colleagues were denied access.
Mityana Municipality MP Francis Zaake put up a dramatic show when he drove towards the office entrance and refused to leave, prompting the police to tow his car away with him in it. Another Mp, for Katikamu South Hon Hassan Kirumira was bundled onto a police pick up and whisked off to an unknown police post.
The NUP Deputy President Lina Zedriga escaped arrest narrowly. Other arrests involving an unspecified number of people have happened since morning.
Meanwhile, the drama climaxed with piglets getting dropped at the roadside, written on in blank ink, “1.7billion., lop”It is alleged that unidentified youth riding on a bodaboda dumped the animals in two sacks before fleeing .
The leader of opposition in Parliament Joel Ssenyonyi has been under fire for allegedly accepting a bribe worth 1.7 billion shillings to cover up a (COSASE) report, allegations he has vehemently denied.
Rumours started circulating from former TV reporter Dean Lubowa Saava, who claimed that Ssenyonyi was given a handshake of 1 billion shillings while serving as the chairperson of Parliament’s Committee on Commissions, Statutory Authorities and State Enterprises (Cosase), to over look findings at the Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA).
Ssenyonyi who has since denied the claims, solicited help from Pace Advocates, threatening to sue Saava and another, Geoffrey Lukwago, for what he describes as false and malicious allegations.
“You can’t say Shs1bn today, Shs1.4bn tomorrow, and then Shs1.7bn the next day. Be organized even as you spread your propaganda. When you fight corruption, it fights back” he posted on his socials last week
Ssenyonyi gave Saava an ultimatum of 48 hours to repent and retract his statements. But from the look of things, Saava has refused, claiming to have sufficient information about Ssenyonyi.
Meanwhile, the hashtag #SsenyonyiMustResign is gaining traction on the microblogging site X, calling for his resignation.
