The High Court in Kampala has ordered the government and security agencies to investigate the origin of videos circulating on social media that allegedly show political activist Sam Mugumya in a severely weakened condition. Civil Division Judge Simon Peter Kinobe issued the directive on Monday while hearing a second application seeking an order compelling authorities to produce Mugumya in court and explain his whereabouts.
The application was filed by Mugumya’s lawyers from Kiiza and Mugisha Advocates, who allege that the activist was abducted by armed men in Mbarara on August 26, 2025, and has since been held incommunicado at a military facility in Kasenyi. Mugumya’s lawyers, led by Kato Tumusiime, allege that armed men seized him in Mbarara on August 26, 2025, bundled him into a vehicle and took him to an undisclosed location.
They contend that he has since been detained at the SFC facility in Kasenyi without access to his family, lawyers or personal physician and has not been brought before a competent court. The lawyers further argue that the facility is not gazetted for the detention of civilians and that Mugumya has neither been charged nor presented before court since his alleged arrest.
Their application is supported by affidavits from people who claim to have information about his alleged detention, including Raymond Asiku Eden and Norman Tumuhimbise. Asiku, who says he was abducted in December 2025 and detained at an SFC-manned facility, claims he personally saw Mugumya while in custody.
He reportedly spent about two months at the facility before his release. According to the lawyers, Asiku described Mugumya as frail and said he could barely stand or take himself to the toilet.
The legal team has also relied on a video circulating on social media that allegedly shows Mugumya emaciated, struggling to stand and requiring assistance to move. Tumusiime says the activist’s apparent condition raises concerns about his health and safety, as well as the possibility of mistreatment during detention.
Justice Kinobe directed the respondents to prepare a comprehensive report detailing investigations into Mugumya’s whereabouts and the circumstances surrounding the emergence of the videos.
The report should establish where the footage was recorded and identify the person who filmed and circulated it. The judge questioned why security agencies had not traced the source of the recordings, given the public discussion surrounding Mugumya’s alleged appearance and condition.
He said investigators should be able to identify people who record and circulate such footage, including those operating under pseudonyms, and establish whether the recordings could help determine Mugumya’s whereabouts. Kinobe emphasised that the central purpose of the proceedings was to establish where Mugumya was being held, if he was in custody, and to compel those responsible to produce him before court.
The respondents have been ordered to file their report electronically through the Electronic Court Case Management Information System (ECCMIS) by November 9, 2026. They include the Chief of Defence Forces, the Commandant of the Special Forces Command (SFC), the Commanding Officer of Kasenyi Barracks, the Director of Intelligence and Security, the Inspector General of Police and the Attorney General.
Lieutenant Colonel Edgar Musasizi, the Director of Civil Affairs at the Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs, has denied that Mugumya is in the custody of any of the respondents. In an affidavit filed in response to the application, Musasizi said that he visited Kasenyi Barracks and checked the relevant detention records and facilities under the respondents’ control but found no evidence that Mugumya was being held there.
He maintains that investigations into the activist’s whereabouts are ongoing and has asked the court to dismiss the application, arguing that the allegations are not supported by sufficient evidence. During Monday’s hearing, Justice Kinobe stressed the need for evidence to be formally presented before the court.
He cautioned the lawyers against relying on social media posts without following the proper procedures for introducing evidence in court. The judge also questioned aspects of an affidavit sworn by Tumuhimbise, particularly information concerning Mugumya’s alleged abduction and detention, raising concerns about the reliance on information that the person making the affidavit may not have witnessed personally.
Kinobe directed that police be represented at the next court session and tasked Musasizi with explaining whether the earlier court orders requiring investigations into Mugumya’s whereabouts had been implemented.
The latest proceedings follow an earlier case in which the High Court directed authorities to investigate Mugumya’s alleged arrest and establish his whereabouts. According to Kiiza and Mugisha Advocates, the court issued an order on September 5, 2025, requiring the respondents to produce Mugumya before court within seven days.
On September 12, 2025, the court also directed the Attorney General and the Inspector General of Police to investigate the alleged arrest and his whereabouts and report back within seven days, but this has not resulted in Mugumya being produced before the court.
Mugumya has previously spent years in military detention in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He was released on October 21, 2022, after spending eight years in jail following his arrest in October 2014. At the time of his release, he was 43.
He faced allegations of illegal entry into the DRC and plotting a rebellion against the Ugandan government. The DRC government had previously declined to extradite him despite calls from the Ugandan government and the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC)-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
