Police in Lira District have on Wednesday January 8th arrested Kyadondo East MP Robert Kyagulanyi (Bobi Wine), People Power spokesman Joel Ssenyonyi and several others and blocked their planned consultative meeting in Lira Town.
This is the third time Police block People Power leaders from holding meetings aimed to consult people about Hon. Kyagulanyi’s 2020/21 presidential candidature.
The meeting was due to take place at Grand Pacific Hotel in Lira Town. Despite Bobi Wine and the people power team led by Mityana Municipality MP Zaake Francis and Latif Sebaggala, the Kawempe North MP, saying that they had fulfilled the police guidelines, Lira DPC George Obia and Milton Odongo, the Lira RDC, insisted that it would not take place.
The army and police deployed at Grand Pacific Hotel, blocking access to the hotel.
RDC Odongo denied audience to the people power team that had visited him at his office ahead of their consultative meeting. When Bobi Wine arrived shortly after, he was immediately arrested and driven in a convoy out of the district. He was arrested alongside Mr Zaake, Mr Ssenyonyi and others. It was not immediately clear where he was being taken. He
“Bobi Wine, Hon. Zaake Francis, Joel Ssenyonyi and other colleagues are in danger right now. Police, the military, and plain-clothed muscular goons carrying heavy sticks, sharp objects, paper spray ropes, and otherwise dangerous objects have surrounded their car in a remote area in Lira. All journalists and ordinary civilians have been sent away from the scene. Urgent help is needed,” People Power movement posted on their website.
Meanwhile, journalists were also denied access to Grand Pacific Hotel. Gadgets including phones and recorders were also confiscated.
Earlier in the afternoon, on his way to Lira, Bobi Wine posted that the town was under heavy deployment.
“Since last night, police cordoned off Pacific Grand Hotel in Lira town. Having claimed that Kyadondo was cancelled because our venue was an open place, we informed them that our venue in Lira was a hall. So they came up with another lie! This time they are lying that we did not secure the venue in Lira! These are receipts of all the venues which we fully booked and even made deposits,” he said.
“In the meantime, the proprietors of the venues in Adjumani and Arua have called us and are pleading to refund the deposits we had made, because they are under instructions from the authorities not to host us. They have been intimidated left, right and centre by all manner of security outfits. This is the situation which we must work hard to change!” he added.
