Kyadondo East MP Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine has spoken out on a statement by President Yoweri Museveni on the handling by Special Forces Command (SFC), in 2018, of the Arua chaos.
In August 2018, the end of campaign rallies for the Arua Municipality byelection to replace slain MP Ibrahim Abiriga turned chaotic after Bobi Wine’s supporters reportedly threw stones at Museveni’s motorcade.
Museveni was rallying behind Nusura Tiperu while Bobi Wine backed former Terego MP Kassiano Wadri.
The ensuing chaos left a one Yasin Kawuma dead, and scores arrested, including Bobi Wine, Wadri (who later emerged winner) and other MPs such as Ntungamo Municipality’s Gerald Karuhanga.
“One of the President’s lead cars was attacked and smashed by these hooligans that were donning colours of one of the contestants in this election, Mr Kassiano Wadri,” said Emilian Kayima, then the police spokesperson.
“Security forces quickly intervened to calm down the situation, and the situation became riotous as many were pelting stones at the convoy of the President – which unacceptable.”
The security agencies that handled the chaos that evening included SFC.
MUSEVENI ON BOBI WINE ARUA FRACAS
Two years since the event happened, Museveni has said security officers had “properly” beaten Bobi Wine.
He shared his ‘findings from a probe’ at a pass out ceremony for 4,809 Learner Assistant Inspectors of Police and Probationary Police Constables at Police Training School, Kabalye in Masindi district.
“The other day there was fracas in West Nile where our young friend Bobi Wine was trying to fight security people. I think they beat him a bit and then they came and said ‘Oh, a member of parliament was beaten,” he narrated.
“Well, I said ‘let me study how he was beaten.’ When I studied, I found the man had been beaten properly in the right way.”
Museveni added that he was surprised the SFC, “who are not police-minded” and “used to doing other things” had “acted properly” in “self defence” from the Bobi Wine group which Museveni and security agencies claim had physically engaged officers in uniform.
“Beyond self defence, they didn’t beat; so, it was in order,” the president went on.
The head-of-state further revealed he told those seeking to punish Bobi Wine and his colleagues for the Arua chaos that it would be “rubbish” to do so.
BOBI WINE ON MUSEVENI STATEMENT ON ARUA FRACAS
But Bobi Wine accused Museveni of “justifying my torture to near death by his guards in Arua, 2018.”
The presidential aspirant also blasted the president for standing “in the way of justice” by ensuring that “perpetrators were never punished!”
He also claimed that such statements are meant to “embolden new recruits to brutalize Ugandans as we near election.”
Read: Andrew Mwenda challenges declaration of Bobi Wine as ‘unopposed’ NUP presidential flag bearer
