The opposition party says it is finalising a federal democracy proposal for nationwide promotion while demanding the release of an alleged disappearance victim and legislation against torture.
The People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) is preparing to launch a federal democracy proposal and begin a nationwide campaign to promote the governance model, alongside renewed demands for accountability over alleged torture and enforced disappearances involving military detention facilities.
PFF acting chairperson Dr Lulume Bayigga said the party was finalising its proposal following a three-day retreat for political party leaders serving in Parliament and local government, organised by the National Consultation Forum.
The retreat considered a consociational democracy proposal authored by Professor Ogenga Otunnu, a former presidential candidate who has spent years abroad pursuing his academic career.
Bayigga said participants examined the proposal’s strengths and weaknesses, particularly its potential to address the concentration and abuse of power, capture of state institutions, militarisation and accountability.
He clarified that the meeting did not require political parties to endorse Otunnu’s proposal. Instead, parties with alternative governance models were invited to submit their ideas within two weeks for consideration at a subsequent meeting.
“The People’s Front for Freedom made a snapshot exposition of the federal democracy paradigm, which is our own paradigm,” Bayigga said.
He added that the proposal would be submitted to the party’s Cabinet and Council of Eminent Persons for approval before its public launch.
The party intends to invite the media to the launch and subsequently embark on a nationwide campaign to promote federal democracy in Uganda. Bayiga also said PFF representatives who attended the retreat were unaware of any engagements outside the official programme.
In a separate development, Bayigga paid tribute to the late Lieutenant Herbert Matanda Mabonga, a former Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) officer whom he credited with exposing alleged abuses in military detention facilities.
Bayigga said Matanda Mabonga joined the UPDF on August 8, 2011, served in military intelligence under the Chief Directorate of Defence Intelligence and Security, formerly known as the Chieftaincy of Military Intelligence (CMI), and worked as an aide to the late General Aronda Nyakairima in 2014 and 2015.
According to Bayiga, the officer subsequently left military service as a conscientious objector after witnessing abuses allegedly associated with safe houses, where detainees were reportedly subjected to arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and torture.
Bayigga cited video footage and documented accounts that he said showed opposition figures, including Bobi Wine and Muwanga Kivumbi, undergoing physical rehabilitation after alleged mistreatment in detention. He also referred to the case of Dr Mildred Mutende as evidence of alleged abuses.
He further alleged that, following the exposure of the reported abuses, the UPDF and Special Forces Command (SFC) closed a detention facility at Abayita Ababiri and transferred detainees elsewhere.
However, Bayigga said the party had not established the detainees’ exact destination, although it suspected they might have been moved to Mbuya Barracks.
Praising Matanda Mabonga for what he described as courage, patriotism and statesmanship, Bayiga said the party would honour the late officer with the honorary title of Major General.
The PFF leader also demanded the release of Sam Kumi, whom he said had been subjected to enforced disappearance by the UPDF and SFC, to enable him to reunite with his family and obtain medical treatment and physical rehabilitation.
“We demand that Sam Kumi be freed by the UPDF-SFC that disappeared him, to join his family and seek his doctors for medical treatment and physical rehabilitation, and to free other victims under their barbaric hands,” Bayigga said.
He called on Parliament to enact legislation explicitly outlawing torture chambers and all forms of torture, with severe penalties for perpetrators and compensation for victims of torture and enforced disappearance.
“We demand that Parliament legislates to outlaw the basement torture chambers and all forms of torture of all the enforced disappearance victims, with severe consequences to the perpetrators of such barbaric actions against humanity, and to compensate the victims,” he said.
The allegations concerning military detention facilities, torture, detainee transfers and enforced disappearances were made by Bayigga and had not been independently verified by the time of publication.
The UPDF, SFC and other relevant authorities had not responded to the allegations by the time of publication.