Exiled Ex-Supreme Court Justice Kisakye Writes to Museveni over Post-Election Crackdown on Opposition

Former Supreme Court Justice Esther Kisaakye, who is currently living in exile, has written to President Yoweri Museveni questioning the continued crackdown on opposition leaders, supporters and civil society actors following the disputed January 15, 2026, general elections.

President Museveni was declared the winner of the polls with 71.6 per cent of the valid votes cast, while his main challenger, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu of the National Unity Platform (NUP), was credited with 24.7 percent. Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, rejected the results, alleging that the election was rigged in favour of the incumbent.

In the days following the announcement of results, security forces mounted a blockade around Kyagulanyi’s home in Magere, Wakiso District, effectively cutting him off from the public. Kyagulanyi later said he escaped from the residence unnoticed and is currently in hiding.

In a letter dated Sunday, January 25, 2026, Justice Kisaakye—who authored a dissenting opinion in the 2021 presidential election petition in which she held that Bobi Wine had won that election—raised concerns about what she described as widespread repression targeting opposition figures and their supporters.

“Many other Ugandan citizens are missing or in unlawful detention for their political views or for supporting opposition candidates,” Kisaakye wrote. “Mr President, you are the President of Uganda and the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. Your son is the Chief of Defence Forces. Can all of the above be happening without your knowledge or consent?”

She further asked that if Museveni did not authorise the actions, what steps he had taken to restore discipline and legality within the army and police, which operate under his direct authority.

Museveni campaigned under the slogan “protecting the gains,” referring to achievements made since he took power in 1986. Kisaakye questioned whether that slogan now meant “placing opponents under siege, arresting them, labelling them terrorists, and imprisoning them for indefinite periods.”

The former justice cited the 1995 Constitution, enacted under Museveni’s leadership, which provides for multiparty democracy and grants candidates the right to challenge election results in court.

“When opposition leaders are hunted, their homes surrounded by armed men, and their parties terrorised, constitutional guarantees and rights become meaningless,” she said.

Kisaakye also questioned the legitimacy of the 2026 election outcome, echoing concerns she raised in her 2021 judgment.

“If you genuinely won this election, why prevent opposition leaders from using lawful and constitutional means to challenge the election results if they wish to?” she asked. “What peace is being protected when some sections of the population do not live in peace? Do we have one Uganda, or two?”

She further noted that Museveni’s victory was announced amid a nationwide internet shutdown.

“Your election win was secured in darkness in the midst of a nationwide internet shutdown,” Kisaakye wrote. “The statements and actions that have followed since you were declared the winner continue to raise questions about whether you actually won the election. If you won legitimately, repression is unnecessary. If repression exists, legitimacy is in question.”

In the letter, Kisaakye outlined ten demands she said Museveni should immediately enforce, including restoring the rule of law, halting abuses by security forces, allowing citizens to freely exercise their constitutional rights, ending abductions and killings, lifting sieges on opposition leaders’ homes, and stopping the labelling of political opponents and their supporters as terrorists.

As of publication, the State House had not issued an official response to Justice Kisaakye’s letter.