Besigye family says he was at Kasangati home on alleged Geneva meeting date

The family of jailed opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye is poking more holes in the evidence being adduced against the former presidential candidate in the treason case he faces alongside his colleague Obeid Lutale

The family says he was at his Kasangati home on May 24, 2020, the date shown on a video that a key prosecution witness says he secretly recorded during a meeting with Besigye in Geneva, Switzerland.

Besigye's wife, Winnie Byanyima, raised the claim on August 26, 2026, after sharing a message from Deo Given Okodi, a young man under Besigye's guardianship.

Okodi said he remembers May 24, 2020, because it was his birthday and Uganda was under the Covid-19 lockdown.

“I was in S.6, locked down at the Kasangati home, and it was my birthday. Dr. KB gave me a box of chocolates, my first ever birthday celebration. I have never forgotten that kindness,” Okodi said in the message shared by Byanyima.

His account adds another twist to questions surrounding video evidence presented in Besigye's treason trial before High Court judge Emmanuel Baguma.

Andrew Wilson, an American private security investigator and the prosecution's first witness, told court that he met Besigye and Joel Wakayima in Geneva on January 28, 2024.

However, video played in court from the alleged meeting carried a timestamp of May 24, 2020. The discrepancy drew questions in court over when the recording was made.

Byanyima used Okodi's account to challenge the prosecution evidence.

“It pains me, seeing the same date now being used by the State to tell a completely different story,” Okodi said. 

“It is deeply disappointing when facts and memories are seemingly reshaped to fit a narrative.”

Wilson has told court that he used several commercial devices fitted with hidden cameras and microphones to record meetings with Besigye and other people. 

On August 26, he described the equipment as cheap and said he was operating on a limited budget.

During his testimony, Wilson alleged that the January 2024 Geneva meeting involved discussions about assassinating President Yoweri Museveni and shifting blame to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF).

Wilson told court that he suggested assassinating Museveni if the group was serious about overthrowing the government. He alleged that Besigye and Wakayima agreed with the proposal and discussed how responsibility could be attributed to the ADF.

He also alleged that the group discussed using a drone against a commercial aircraft to create chaos. 

Other reporting from the proceedings said the discussion involved planting a bomb in an aircraft engine carrying tourists and using the resulting publicity against Museveni's government.

Audio from some of the material played in court was distorted and difficult to hear, forcing Wilson to explain parts of the conversations to the judge.

Wilson has also told court that recordings from another alleged meeting involving Besigye in Nairobi were lost after Kenyan police interfered with his recording equipment.

Besigye faces treason charges alongside Hajji Obeid Lutale and Capt Denis Oola. Prosecutors accuse the three of plotting to overthrow Museveni's government through activities in Uganda, Kenya, Greece and Switzerland. They deny the charges.

Besigye is being tried in absentia after health problems kept him away from court. His family and supporters have continued to raise concerns about his condition and the conduct of the trial.