Uganda Officials Offer Conflicting Statements on Bobi Wine’s Fate

 A sharp divide has emerged within Uganda’s top leadership over the status of National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi, populary known as Bobi Wine.

Speaking on NBS TV late Sunday, Information Minister Dr. Chris Baryomunsi dismissed Kyagulanyi’s week-long disappearance as “cowardice and drama.” Baryomunsi insisted that the state has no interest in arresting the musician-turned-politician, despite a heavy military presence at his Magere residence.

“There’s no need for him to be in hiding. Nobody wants him,” Baryomunsi said. “He should stop the theatrics and return home to observe law and order.”

However, the Minister’s “business as usual” tone was flatly contradicted by the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba. In a series of provocative posts on X (formerly Twitter) in the early hours of Monday morning, Jan 26, the General confirmed the military is actively hunting for Kyagulanyi, whom he branded a “coward.”

Gen. Muhoozi reportedly issued a 48-hour window for Kyagulanyi to turn himself in to the police, warning that failure to do so would result in him being treated as an “outlaw.”

The General also used his social media platform to deny allegations that his soldiers assaulted Kyagulanyi’s wife, Barbra (Barbie) Itungo, during a night raid on January 23. “My soldiers did not beat up Barbie,” he posted. “We do not beat up women… We are looking for her cowardly husband, not her.”

“He tore my lip” — Barbie Itungo Recounts Raid.

While the CDF denies the assault, Ms. Itungo remains hospitalized. Speaking from her bed on Saturday, she described a harrowing scene where dozens of armed men, some in uniform, broke into the family home at 10 PM.

Ms. Itungo alleged that the attackers became violent after she refused to provide passwords for her mobile devices. She recounted being choked and lifted into the air by her waistband while another officer tore her clothing.

“One of them hit me in the face and tore my lip,” Ms. Itungo said, adding that she eventually passed out. She believes the brutality was designed to “break Bobi’s spirit” and force him out of hiding.

The standoff comes as the NUP faces an intensifying post-election squeeze. While the Electoral Commission declared President Museveni the winner with 71.65% of the vote, the NUP has rejected the figures as “fabricated.”

The party’s leadership is currently hollowed out by arrests:

• Muwanga-Kivumbi: Remanded over an alleged post-election terror plot.

• Jolly Tukamushaba & Lina Zedriga: NUP Deputy Presidents currently in detention.

• 2,000 Supporters: Allegedly detained across the country, according to security reports.

Despite the Minister’s call for Kyagulanyi to take his grievances to the courts, the NUP leader , speaking from an undisclosed location stated he will not contest the results through the judiciary, claiming the courts are “not independent.”