A significant section of Uganda’s opposition lawmakers on Thursday stayed away from President Yoweri Museveni’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) at Kololo Ceremonial Grounds over renewed concerns over alleged enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, and the continued detention of opposition supporters.
The boycott left large sections of the opposition seating area conspicuously empty as President Museveni delivered his constitutionally mandated address outlining the government’s priorities and performance. Several seats designated for opposition legislators were reportedly occupied by members of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), underscoring the political symbolism of the absence. The protest appeared to be led by members of the opposition, particularly those affiliated with the National Unity Platform, largest opposition party in Parliament.
In the 12th Parliament, NUP remains the dominant opposition force with some 46 MP, followed by legislators from the Forum for Democratic Change, Uganda People’s Congress, Democratic Party, and a number of independents aligned with the opposition.
Neither Opposition leader Joel Ssenyonyi, nor NUP the party issued a statement explaining the boycott before the address. However, statements from party leaders suggest the action was linked to longstanding grievances over what they as politically linked arrests, disappearances, and prosecutions targeting opposition supporters.
The boycott came days after NUP renewed public attention to the case of Johnbosco Kibalama, a pioneer coordinator of the People Power movement who allegedly disappeared on June 3, 2019. In a statement posted on social media, NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya said Kibalama was abducted along Gayaza Road on Martyrs Day and has not been seen since.
“Years later, all efforts to locate him have yielded no success,” Rubongoya stated. “During this period, his mother, father and wife have all passed away.”
The matter is not new to Parliament. During the 11th Parliament, then Leader of Government Business and Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja acknowledged on the floor of Parliament that Kibalama was in state custody, a revelation that intensified calls for accountability from opposition legislators and human rights advocates.
The opposition has repeatedly argued that such cases reflect a broader pattern of enforced disappearances and prolonged detention of political activists. Government officials, however, have consistently maintained that security agencies operate within the law and that suspects arrested on criminal charges are processed through established legal procedures.
In a separate message released ahead of the State of the Nation Address, Ssenyonyi referenced what he termed “political prisoners” being held on what opposition groups describe as fabricated charges.
“Thinking about the political prisoners who are languishing in various prisons on trumped-up charges, they are prisoners of conscience being persecuted for their political beliefs,” Ssenyonyi said, invoking the words of American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
The boycott highlights the widening gulf between the government and opposition parties on issues of governance, human rights, and political freedoms.
Under Article 101 of the Constitution, the President is required to deliver an annual State of the Nation Address to Parliament on the state of affairs of the country. The event traditionally provides an opportunity for national reflection on governance, economic performance, security, and public policy priorities.
However, opposition critics argue that constitutional ceremonies risk losing their significance if concerns about civil liberties and accountability remain unresolved.
Human rights organizations, including Uganda’s Human Rights Commission and international watchdogs, have in previous years documented allegations of arbitrary arrests, prolonged detention, and disappearances involving political actors. Government agencies have frequently rejected claims of systematic abuses, insisting that security operations are guided by law and national security considerations. The near-empty opposition benches at Kololo therefore carried symbolism extending beyond a parliamentary protest. They reflected a deeper contest over the state of Uganda’s democracy, the role of dissent in governance, and whether national dialogue can occur amid unresolved allegations of human rights violations-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
