‘I thought he was my friend’ - Gunter says Kenzo abandoned him in Dubai jail

Gunter narrated last weekend how he begged his friends, including the leadership of the Uganda National Musicians Federation (UNMF) but got no help.

The Tubayo singer was arrested in January this year in Dubai during a fight involving events promoters.

Although he told authorities, and CCTV footage later proved that he only came in to break up the fight, Gunter was still locked up in three different jails in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

He was later released on bond and arraigned before courts of law for participating in the fight rather than calling the police.

Gunter says during this ordeal, he reached out to his Ugandan friends but they were not willing to help him.

In particular, he said, he begged UNMF president Eddy Kenzo to bail him out, to no avail.

“When I was released from jail to start going to court from home, I was able to reach out to Kenzo because I thought he was my friend, but it seems I was wrong,” Gunter said.

“I spoke to him several times on WhatsApp but in the end, he told me that he did not have money.”

Following is arrest on January 23, Kenzo issued a statement saying that he has contacted the Ugandan Ambassador in the UAE to help secure Gunter's release.

Eventually, the singer said, he was helped out by a handful of close friends and fellow artists including Crystal Panda, Bobi Wine, Abrianz and Judith Hard.

Even the Ugandan Embassy in Abu Dhabi, he said, offered no help to him.