Gen Kainerugaba tells Odonga Otto: ‘Lukwago had this coming’

Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba has intensified his remarks about former Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago, saying the opposition politician’s arrest was long overdue.

Gen Kainerugaba made the comments on X while responding to former Aruu County MP Odonga Otto, who had raised concerns about the arrest and the public’s reaction to it.

“My brother Hon. Otto, you are one of the few people I respect. Lukwago had this coming, it was a long time coming. We haven’t started on him yet,” Gen Kainerugaba wrote.

Otto had earlier posted:

“Power and life are all temporal things.

In 50 yrs the terrain and issues will be totally different.

What bothers me is not the safety (now and in the future) of @mkainerugaba. But rather the deep seated laid back silence of Ugandans when they even know something is not right.”

The exchange comes amid growing debate over Lukwago’s detention.

The People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) president was reportedly taken from his home in Wakaliga by security operatives on Sunday.

Gen Kainerugaba later confirmed that he had ordered the operation.

Since then, the CDF has posted several messages about Lukwago. He recently shared two photos of the former Kampala Lord Mayor on X. In one post, he captioned the image “Ongea Kiswahili”, while in another he wrote: “He keeps saying ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry’. It won’t help him now.”

Gen Kainerugaba also rejected an appeal from lawyer Tonny Tumukunde, who had asked him to show mercy because of Lukwago’s health condition.

Lukwago is one of the lawyers representing opposition politician Kizza Besigye and has long been a critic of the government.

By press time, authorities had not announced any charges against him or disclosed where he was being held.