POLICE: We do not know where Kivumbi is

What the report says

The Independent Uganda, citing URN, reports that Inspector General of Police Abas Byakagaba has asked the High Court in Kampala to throw out a habeas corpus application seeking the production and unconditional release of Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, the former Butambala County MP and National Unity Platform vice president for the Central Region. The police position, filed at the Civil Division, is that there is no proof Kivumbi is being held by the Uganda Police Force.

According to the report, Assistant Commissioner of Police Godwin Tumugumye swore an affidavit on behalf of the IGP, saying police did not arrest or detain Kivumbi after his release on bail and that checks at relevant police units and stations found no custody record from July 10, 2026. The matter was heard on Tuesday before Justice Collins Acellam, who reserved a ruling expected via the Electronic Court Case Management Information System on Wednesday. The Chief of Defence Forces is also named as a respondent, but had reportedly not filed a reply by the close of the hearing.

Kivumbi’s lawyers filed the application under human rights and constitutional provisions after he was allegedly taken by uniformed and plain-clothed military personnel near Mpigi while travelling from Butambala to Kampala. His brother, Hajji Musa Lutaaya, says in a supporting affidavit that Kivumbi was moved in an unmarked van and has since been held without access to relatives, lawyers or medical personnel.

The case follows Kivumbi’s July 9 bail grant by International Crimes Division Judge Susan Okalany. He and 16 co-accused face terrorism-related charges linked to alleged attacks on Kibibi Police Station and a Butambala Electoral Commission tally centre during the January 2026 elections, in violence prosecutors say left seven people dead.