Disappeared NUP Prisoners: ‘Sleepy’ Serving LoP Irks Predecessor To Swing Into Action

In reigniting the emotional debate on “The Missing 18” and disappeared supporters of the largest opposition party -National Unity Platform (NUP), the former Leader of Opposition (LoP) Mathias Mpuuga, has petitioned the Speaker of Parliament Anita Among regarding the issue.

In his letter, the former LoP referred to resolutions made on 5th December 2023, which included investigations into human rights violations and reports on political prisoners.

“…that the committees of Human Rights together with Defense and Internal Affairs investigate the violation of human rights in various fishing communities across the country, and report to the house, the Attorney General reports to the House in 30 days then, on the listed political prisoners and their continued detention without trial, the minister of internal affairs reports to parliament the progress of reported fresh investigations on the missing persons,” reads part of Mpuuga’s letter.

The fourth resolution, Mpuuga said, “the human rights commission was to be asked to re-investigate the missing persons and report to parliament.”

According to the Nyendo-Mukungwe Division legislator, these resolutions offered “hope to the families of the missing persons, prisoners, and victims of human rights violations” across the country.

However, six months later, the former LoP has established that his successor Joel Ssenyonyi is not taking the issue seriously and is instead focused on largely trivial matters.

Mpuuga, expressed disappointment that his successor is not building on the efforts he had invested in locating the whereabouts of the missing persons, thus swinging into action to salvage the situation.

“I wish to request that, the House is appraised on the progress of the above resolutions upon resumption of plenary sittings, with a view of bringing them to bear upon the concerned officers and general public,” Mpuuga asked the Speaker.

During his tenure as LoP, Mpuuga now a Parliamentary Commissioner had embarked on a parallel investigation to trace the whereabouts of the 18 NUP supporters allegedly abducted by security personnel.

The former LoP led an opposition boycott of plenary proceedings for two months, demanding action over these human rights abuses. In unprecedented manner, he visited each of the 18 families whose loved ones disappeared in the last four years to generate a recollection of events surrounding their shadowy departures in the hands of state operatives.

The former LoP emphasized that these issues must be addressed before the next election, and there must be commitments from all that the rules of the game must be respected, and most importantly, the rules must be reconstructed.

“As we speak now, the people who disappeared in the last election are still missing… I want updates about the commitments of the Government on missing persons,” an outraged Mpuuga said, “my thinking earlier was that this was a matter that was going to be pursued by my successors. They seem to be sleeping.”

The missing persons include: John Bosco Kibalama, John Damulira, Shafik Wangolo, Martin Lukwago, Michael Semudu, Musisi Mbowa, Vincent Nalumoso, Dennis Zimbula, Muhammad Kanatta, George Katumba, Moses Mbabazi, Yuda Ssempijja, Alphat Mugumya, Peter Kitya, Mustapha Muwemba, Hassan Mubiru, Isma Ssesaazi, and Godfrey Kisembo.

Mpuuga recounted the plenary debate in which the Opposition situated Ddamulira at Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI) and compelled the Government to admit that they have him.

“How come Ddamulira is still in detention? Has he ever been to court? These issues must return before we can gear up for another circus of an election and there must be commitments from all that the rules of the game must be respected but most importantly, the rules must be reconstructed,” he noted.

Another disappeared person Government admitted his whereabouts, was John Bosco Kibalama, a man who disappeared in June 2019 to no show to date.

However, LoP Ssenyonyi responded to Mpuuga, saying he is actively working on human rights issues.

“For example, I visited prisoners and they were happy to see me saying that they were seeing MPs talking about us on TVs and radios for political mileage, but at least you people have come to visit us which had never happened,” he said.

On missing persons, Ssenyonyi said that “they filed another matter in court to force state to produce them, and we are still waiting for that.”

However one of the family members of the missing 18 persons poured cold water on Ssenyonyi’s action for which he is proud of, saying that “by taking the matter of our people to court at the time when parliament had handled it to that level, was actually a connivance to take it away from the public eye.”