Museveni to speak to court martial over Kayihura charges

President Yoweri Museveni promised to speak to the military court to drop charges against former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Gen. Kale Kayihura.

According to Nrm.ug, the president made the promise while meeting NRM party leaders in Kisoro District, who urged him to pardon the former IGP, as he’s “one of the biggest mobilizers for the party in the region.”

“The President told a gathering of supporters at Saaza Grounds in Kisoro that he would speak to the Military Court to have charges against the former police boss dropped,” reads a post on Nrm.ug.

“This came after leaders from Kisoro, where the NRM has enjoyed overwhelming support, asked the President to look into the charges against Kayihura.”

Gen Kayihura is accused of failing to protect war material by issuing arms to unauthorized persons including Boda Boda 2010 members.

He is also accused of aiding and abetting the kidnapping, repatriating Rwandan exiles and refugees and Ugandan citizens to Rwanda between 2012 and 2016. He denies the charges.

The former police chief was arrested on June 13, 2018, and held at Makindye Military Police Barracks for more than two months until he was charged on August 24, the same year.

President Museveni, who is also the NRM flag bearer, was campaigning in the district for the second time.

“We first organized two meetings for leaders for Kigezi in Kabale and Rukungiri. Since you speak Rufumbira which is not connected to Runyankore and Rukiga, we decided to have a separate meeting here in Kisoro,” he said.

Museveni added that for over 60 years, the past governments, including the colonialists failed to extend services like electricity, better roads and water to Kisoro but noted that only the NRM was able to do it, despite leading the country for only 34 years.

“Before NRM came, electricity stopped in Kasese but areas like Ntungamo, Rukungiri,Kabale, Kanungu and Kisoro itself didn’t have power. You have talked of the Kisoro- Kable road which was tarmacked by the NRM where earlier governments had failed,” he said.

“Whereas there is competition between various parties, I can tell you that NRM is better than all other parties, I ask you to tell people to support NRM because it is the only one with glasses to see Uganda’s problems.”