Otafiire son: my father always suspected his phone calls were being tapped

Fidel Otafiire, the son of Water and Environment minister Gen Kahinda Otafiire, has reacted to the leak of an alleged phone conversation between his father and Uganda’s ambassador to the European Union, Mirjam Blaak-Sow, saying the incident confirms long-held fears that the minister’s communications were under surveillance.

In a post on X on June 19, 2026, Fidel said his father had repeatedly warned that his phone calls were being monitored by what he described as rogue security operatives.

“Otafiire has always said and warned that his phones are being tapped by the usual rogue element’s in security,” Fidel wrote.

“Thank you for the proof 🙏🏾😂. An internal affairs minister and an ambassador being tapped ………”

His comments came hours after an audio recording allegedly featuring Gen Otafiire and Ambassador Blaak-Sow circulated online, triggering fresh political debate.

The leaked conversation is said to have taken place shortly after the January 2026 General Election. In the recording, the ambassador reportedly sought clarification from Otafiire over whether opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, alias Bobi Wine, was being pursued by security agencies.

At the time, then Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba had posted messages on social media indicating that he was looking for Bobi Wine, even as government officials maintained that the National Unity Platform leader was not a wanted man.

According to transcripts, Otafiire told the ambassador that Bobi Wine was not wanted and expressed concern that Muhoozi’s social media posts were complicating Uganda’s position as the government faced scrutiny from European lawmakers over the conduct of the elections.

The authenticity of the leaked recording has not been independently verified. Neither Otafiire nor Ambassador Blaak-Sow had publicly confirmed the audio by Friday evening.

However, Fidel’s comments suggest the minister’s family believes the recording is genuine and that it may have been obtained through unlawful surveillance.

The leak has surfaced at a time of heightened tensions between Otafiire and Muhoozi.

The relationship between the two senior figures has deteriorated in recent months following disagreements over succession politics and public criticism of security operations.

Earlier this week, Otafiire criticised alleged extrajudicial killings linked to some officers in the Crime Intelligence Directorate, urging newly appointed Internal Affairs minister Prof Ephraim Kamuntu not to tolerate such actions.

Muhoozi responded sharply, accusing Otafiire of provoking him and warning that the veteran minister was “dangerously close to being arrested.”

Kabanda Daudi, the secretary general of the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU), later joined the dispute, accusing Otafiire of leading a group of NRM historicals who use Muhoozi as a proxy target in their disagreements with President Yoweri Museveni.

The emergence of the leaked phone call is likely to deepen scrutiny of both the rivalry between Otafiire and Muhoozi and allegations of surveillance within Uganda’s security establishment.