Former presidential candidate, opposition leader arrested in Uganda

By Godfrey Olukya

KAMPALA, Uganda (AA) - A former opposition leader in Uganda was arrested on Thursday during a protest march against rising commodity prices.

Kizza Besigye, the former head of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party and three-time presidential hopeful, was arrested along the road to Kampala, later vowing to continue protesting until the government takes actions to curb the swelling prices.

"Today, we want all Ugandans to wake up and make the government do something about the high prices. There will be no turning back until when there is a change we want," Besigye, 66, told reporters after his arrest.

As he was being arrested, Besigye was reportedly heard shouting: "I'm doing this for all Ugandans, including you yourselves. You can't afford to lead a good life. You can't take your children to good schools, because you are underpaid."

However, police said they stopped Besigye from entering the city against the risk of him causing confusion.

The police spokesman for Kampala Metropolitan, Lucas Owoyesigire, told Anadolu Agency: "We got intelligence information that Besigye wanted to come to the city and demonstrate. We stopped him from coming and we took him back to his home."

"We advise him to respect the public order management law, which requires anyone with the intention to demonstrate to first get permission from police," he added.

Besigye has in the past held several demonstrations that led to his arrest. After elections in the East African nation in 2011 and 2016, Besigye led protests that paralyzed Kampala, after which he was detained multiple times.

The prices of basic commodities in the country have shot up by over 50%, with the government blaming external factors, like the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war.