Ugandan President, Museveni admits to keeping Kenyan activists “in the fridge”

For the first time since their disappearance, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has acknowledged that two Kenyan activists, Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo, were indeed detained by Ugandan security forces and kept in the fridge for five weeks.

The pair vanished last month after attending a political event in support of opposition leader Bobi Wine. Witnesses reported that masked uniformed men forcibly took them into a vehicle shortly after the gathering, sparking regional outrage.

Ugandan President, Museveni admits to keeping activists in the fridge

Speaking in a live interview on Saturday, Museveni described the men as “experts in riots” and admitted they were put “in the fridge for some days.” He accused foreign actors of stirring unrest in East Africa and warned that those “playing that game in Uganda will end badly.”

Museveni revealed that the two activists were released after intervention from “some Kenyan leaders” who called for their freedom. Upon returning to Kenya, Njagi and Oyoo were welcomed by jubilant supporters at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. “Thirty-eight days of abduction was not easy. We didn’t think we were going to come out alive because we were being abducted by the military,” Njagi said.

Kenya’s Foreign Minister, Musalia Mudavadi, confirmed their release was the result of “sustained diplomatic engagement” between the two countries.

Organizations advocating for their freedom, including Vocal Africa, the Law Society of Kenya, and Amnesty International, lauded the release, emphasizing the importance of upholding human rights across the East African Community.

Bobi Wine criticized Ugandan authorities for detaining the men due to their ties to him. “If they committed any offence, why were they not produced before court and formally charged?” he questioned on social media.

The incident has intensified concerns about a rising pattern of abductions and cross-border detentions targeting activists and opposition supporters in the region.