Police speaks out on disappearance of activist Praise Aloikin

Police have confirmed that activist Praise Aloikin Opoloje is in their custody, ending uncertainty over her whereabouts following reports that armed men took her from Namungoona Police Station at the weekend.

Police spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke said on Monday, September 28, 2026, that Aloikin was being held over allegations linked to the use of her social media account and would be produced in court.

“She is in police hands, and at an appropriate time she will be placed in front of the temple of justice to answer to allegations against her, having knowingly misused her digital handle and offended,” Rusoke said.

“She must have known that she is not beyond and above the law. She is among the people that can be held to account and that is precisely what was done.”

Rusoke did not, in the remarks, explain the circumstances under which Aloikin was taken from Namungoona or specify the offence she allegedly committed.

He warned that other social media users could also face arrest if police believe they have broken the law.

“There are several other people in this category who, when arrested, try to demonstrate shock that they have been arrested,” he said.

“You will be arrested and taken on as long as you break the law of the country.”

Aloikin, a human rights activist and final-year law student at Makerere University, was reported missing on Saturday, September 26, after going to Namungoona Police Station over a dispute involving a carpet.

Agora Discourse, an activist group with which she has worked, said Aloikin had voluntarily gone to the station with the carpet and a friend after police summoned her over a complaint.

The group alleged that armed men later arrived at the station, forced her into a vehicle and drove away with her. Her whereabouts were initially unknown.

The incident sparked calls from lawyers and civil society organisations for security agencies to disclose where she was being held.

Aloikin was later traced to Kampala Central Police Station (CPS).

The Uganda Law Society (ULS) was among the organisations that raised concern over her reported disappearance and demanded that authorities disclose her whereabouts and ensure access to lawyers and family.

Aloikin has been involved in several anti-corruption and civic protests in recent years.

She was among activists arrested during the July 2024 anti-corruption demonstrations commonly known as the March to Parliament, in which protesters demanded action over allegations of corruption and abuse of public resources.

She also participated in a September 2024 protest in which three women stripped to their underwear and painted themselves in Uganda's national colours as they demonstrated outside Parliament. Police arrested the protesters.

Her activism has earned her international recognition. In 2025, the European Union delegation in Uganda named her the winner of its Human Rights Defenders Award. She was also among the finalists for the 2025 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.