Muhoozi links Rwandan dissident Kabera’s murder to Kandiho arrest

Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba has suggested that the murder of Rwandan dissident Sergeant Major Robert Kabera could have been retaliation for the arrest of former military intelligence chief Maj Gen Abel Kandiho.

Muhoozi, on Tuesday accused elements within the Rwanda National Congress (RNC), a rebel group associated with exiled former Rwandan army chief Kayumba Nyamwasa, of possible involvement. He provided no evidence to support the suspicion.

“I highly suspect that certain elements of Kayumba’s RNC were responsible. Are they retaliating for Kandiho’s arrest? We shall get to the truth,” he wrote.

Muhoozi also said his office had not been notified about the former Rwanda Defence Forces soldier.

His remarks introduce a possible motive that police had not established in their earlier account of the killing.

Kabera’s headless body was found by residents in Luwala village, Kamengo sub-county, Mpigi district, on October 17. Police said relatives identified the deceased, about 50, but scientific tests would confirm his identity.

Kabera, a military instructor and musician known as “Sergeant Robert”, fled Rwanda in November 2020, alleging persecution. Human Rights Watch later documented his security concerns and said Ugandan police had confirmed that he received asylum on grounds of political persecution. 

Abel Kandiho, previously headed Uganda’s Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence, now Defence Intelligence and Security.

He and another former intelligence chief, retired Brig Gen Charles Bakahumura, were arrested on September 9, weeks after retiring from the army. 

Reports linked their detention to investigations into alleged false intelligence reports and security-related offences. 

Kandiho led military intelligence from 2017 until his replacement by Maj Gen James Birungi in January 2022. He later served as chief of joint staff in the Uganda Police Force before receiving a presidential advisory appointment in 2024.

Meanwhile, the RNC, referenced by Muhoozi, was founded in 2010 by former senior Rwandan officials, including Nyamwasa.

It operates as an opposition movement in exile against President Paul Kagame’s government. Its founding declaration advocated political change through peaceful means. 

However, UN experts have documented an associated armed movement in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. A 2020 report described P5 as the RNC’s armed branch and recorded recruitment and military activity. Nyamwasa acknowledged his RNC role but denied leading the military group identified by the experts. 

In an October 18 statement issued before Muhoozi’s accusation, the RNC appealed to President Yoweri Museveni for an investigation into Kabera’s death and stronger protection for Rwandan exiles. It said Kabera was not an RNC member.

Muhoozi’s post did not explain what relationship he believed connected Kandiho’s arrest, the RNC and Kabera’s murder.