‘It’s hard to defend PLU in our churches amid endless citizen abductions’ – Grace Lubega

Phaneroo Ministries lead pastor Grace Lubega has challenged the leadership of the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU) over persistent reports of abductions and illegal detentions, warning that the incidents have made it difficult for religious leaders to defend their association with the organisation.

Lubega raised the concerns on Friday, November 6, 2026, during a breakfast meeting between Born-again church leaders and senior PLU officials at Serena Kigo Hotel.

The meeting, organised by PLU secretary general Fadhil Twaha, brought together prominent pastors to discuss their relationship with the organisation, which is mobilising support for Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba's anticipated 2031 presidential bid.

Lubega said religious leaders were increasingly facing difficult questions from their congregations over reports of citizens being abducted by security operatives and detained in undisclosed locations.

“Justice and fair trial are not just legal concepts with us…there have been persistent reports of abductions, safe houses, citizens being scooped from the streets by drone vans. That represents a big moral wound,” Lubega said.

“We are not here to judge whether the people who are being detained are right or wrong; that is not our point here. The question is, some of those people have families in our churches; some of them are believers in our churches,” he said.

“We are not against holding accountable those who have done wrong; but you must come up with an answer for us to know how to answer those people — our church members — when they ask us why we see these things and (say nothing).”

Lubega warned that the continued reports of abductions were damaging the credibility of religious leaders who publicly associate with PLU.

“These matters are so glaring that it becomes hard for us and for them to have faith and confidence in us when we say that we are relating with the institution (PLU),” he said.

His remarks come weeks after the arrest and detention of human rights activist Praise Aloikin Opoloje and the reported abduction of her friend, Louis Ninsiima, both identified as members of Phaneroo Ministries.

Opoloje, a 27-year-old lawyer and human rights activist, was arrested on September 26, 2026, after reporting to Namungoona Police Station over a complaint involving a missing carpet.

She was taken away by armed security personnel shortly after arriving at the station.

The arrest followed a video in which Opoloje criticised Gen Kainerugaba and the PLU leadership over alleged human rights violations and the treatment of government critics.

On September 28, she appeared before Buganda Road Chief Magistrate's Court, where prosecutors charged her with unlawfully using a SIM card registered in another person's name.

She secured bail on October 14 after spending more than two weeks on remand. 

Following her release, Opoloje alleged that security operatives had attempted to recruit her into PLU while questioning her about her social media criticism of Gen Kainerugaba.

She claimed the recruitment attempt occurred during her detention at Kampala Central Police Station.

The controversy deepened on November 1 when Louis Ninsiima, a 25-year-old law student at the Law Development Centre and a close friend of Opoloje, was reportedly abducted from his mother's shop along Kiyembe Lane in Kampala.

According to activists and people close to his family, unidentified men dressed in civilian clothes arrived at the shop and questioned his mother about his whereabouts.

When Ninsiima arrived, the men allegedly seized him and demanded information about Opoloje before taking him away.

Ninsiima had reportedly witnessed events surrounding Opoloje's September arrest and helped raise public awareness about her detention.

His disappearance sparked fresh concerns among activists and lawyers, who demanded that security agencies account for his whereabouts.