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Former Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda has told Ugandans not to live in fear of Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, insisting that no individual is above mortality.
Ssemujju’s remarks came after Muhoozi threatened to have him arrested following a social media exchange in which the former legislator criticised the military chief’s conduct.
According to Ssemujju, Muhoozi may appear all-powerful, but only God has authority over life and death. He argued that those who wield power through arrests, torture or intimidation are themselves not immune to the same realities of human existence.
The comments come amid growing controversy surrounding the abduction and torture of former Kampala lord mayor Erias Lukwago.
Lukwago, who is lead defence counsel for jailed opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye, had been attempting to serve court documents on Muhoozi after the CDF was sued by Besigye over his alleged role in the opposition leader’s arrest in Kenya and subsequent social media posts in which he allegedly threatened to have him hanged.
Last week, the High court directed Muhoozi to file his defence within seven days in response to the application filed by Besigye and his co-accused, Hajj Obeid Lutale.
However, yesterday, Monday, security operatives scaled the perimeter wall of Lukwago’s residence in Wakaliga and took him into custody. Muhoozi later posted a photograph of a blindfolded Lukwago lying on a tiled floor, which he described as a “basement”.
The post triggered criticism from several opposition figures and human rights activists. After Ssemujju publicly condemned the incident, Muhoozi reportedly warned that he would be the next person to be arrested.
In response, Ssemujju said he was not intimidated by the threat and urged Ugandans not to look away as, in his view, abuses of power continue unchecked. He argued that public officials, including the CDF, are accountable to citizens and should exercise authority within the confines of the law.
Ssemujju maintained that while anyone can experience fear or suffer at the hands of those in power, no leader is immortal and all are ultimately answerable to history and to God.
Below is the loosely translated interface with Baker Batte Lule (verbatim)
Muhoozi can arrest me, no problem. One time, I appeared on a television talk show with Gen Elly Tumwine shortly after people had been killed in Kampala. Tumwine was gloating and warning that even more people could be killed.
I told him to stop gloating. Many people thought he would have me killed before I even made it back home. But today, Tumwine is dead, and I am still alive. It is only God who has authority over life and death. Muhoozi may torture or even kill, but he takes nothing away from me.
It is only a matter of time before he too dies, just as Tumwine did. Tumwine is now gone, together with the people whose deaths he was accused of celebrating. Muhoozi can kill me, but one day he too will die.
Yes, I will feel the pain of torture like any other human being. Yes, I can have a sense of fear, but I will not stop living my life just because of Muhoozi. As Muslims, we read in the Quran that no one knows where or when they will die.
Some soldiers died in the Luweero bush war. Others died in Somalia. Others perished in helicopter crashes while on their way to Somalia. So yes, I can feel pain. I can experience fear. But I will not lose sleep over Muhoozi. Let him come and arrest me. No problem.
Because after arresting me, will he become immortal?
Will he become an angel whom nobody can ever arrest?
Will he never fall sick?
Will even malaria become afraid to attack him?
Let people stop being excessively afraid of Muhoozi. Muhoozi has a duty to serve the interests of Ugandans, not his personal interests. He’s paid by taxpayers, and those taxpayers have every right to hold him accountable. So whatever he says, I care very little about it.
Whether he chooses to arrest me or kill me is entirely up to him. But I will never live in fear.
Related
, https://observer.ug/news/ssemujju-to-muhoozi-im-not-afraid-of-you-youre-not-immortal/
