The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Masaka Municipality Member of Parliament, Mathias Mpuuga Nsamba and his Bukoto East county counterpart, Florence Namayanja are locked up at Masaka central police station in relation to protests that followed the arrest of Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, the National Unity Platform-NUP presidential candidate.
They are locked alongside Evan Kanyike, the Bukoto East NUP parliamentary candidate, Juliet Kakande Nakabuye, Masaka Woman parliamentary candidate and Dr. Abed Bwanika, the Kimanya-Kabonera division parliamentary candidate. The politicians were picked up together with their political assistants and coordinators. The suspects were picked up in a joint police and military raid on Mpuuga’s home in Soweto zone in Katwe-Butego division.
Paul Mukalazi, one of the assistants at Mpuuga’s home says the security officers broke the main gate to the legislator’s home and forced themselves into the compound. They eventually stormed the house where some of the leaders were planning their campaign meeting.
He says police officers threw teargas into the houses to force those inside to come out. According to Mulakazi, the suspects were brutally arrested and bundled on a police patrol truck that drove them to Masaka central police station. Joseph Kasirye, one of the NUP coordinators in Masaka says their leaders were meeting to draw a campaign plan for their presidential candidate who is expected in the area between Friday and Saturday.
He however says police accused them of coordinating the demonstrations that had spread to different parts of Masaka town as NUP supporters protested the arrest of their presidential candidate. Muhammad Nsubuga, the greater Masaka region police spokesperson says the politicians were arrested on intelligence indicating that they were planning anarchy in the town.
Nsubuga says police is holding dozens of several other people who were arrested in relation to the demonstrations that were conducted in the area of Wednesday.
Apparently, there is heavy security deployment in the vicinity of Masaka central police station and Nyendo division station.
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