UgandaToday: Fatal Police Shooting on Kyagulanyi Campaign Trail Sparks Outrage
By Uganda Today Reporter
MBALE/SIRONKO — A fatal shooting involving police officers at Buchibindi village during the campaign trail of National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu has triggered widespread condemnation, after Dr. Hamza Lubuulwa, a resident of Mbale City, was shot and fatally injured in a confrontation cat and mouse chase between police and Kyagulanyi’s supporters along the Mbale–Sironko route.
According to eyewitnesses and accounts from campaign organizers, the incident occurred as Kyagulanyi’s convoy was traveling to Sironko District at Buchibindi village for scheduled political engagements. Dr. Lubuulwa is reported to have been caught up in a chaotic police operation that devolved into violence, culminating in his fatal shooting.
Witness Accounts: Ambushes and Brutality Alleged
Multiple witnesses described a familiar pattern along Kyagulanyi’s campaign trail: sudden police roadblocks, aggressive dispersal of supporters, hauling tear gas canisters into Kyagulanyi supporters and what they termed ambush-style deployments targeting the convoy and its followers.
Supporters allege that police officers intercepted the procession at Nalugugu, beat civilians—including bodaboda riders—and used force to scatter crowds that were following the opposition leader. In the ensuing confusion, Dr. Lubuulwa who was together with NUP aspirant Mayor shut themselves in the car after swerving it off the main road, police followed them up, “smashed the wind screens, dragged the two out, beat them severely and there after, one police officer pulled out a Bren and shot the doctor in the head”.
“This was not crowd control; it was a crackdown,” said one witness who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals. “People were running, motorcycles were being seized, and officers were beating anyone they found.”
A Growing Pattern on the Campaign Trail
Today’s fatality adds to a growing list of violent encounters reported during Kyagulanyi’s countrywide campaign. Civil society groups and opposition figures argue that security agencies have increasingly normalized heavy-handed tactics, including beatings, arrests, and disruption of lawful political activities.
Observers note that such incidents have not been isolated, but rather part of a recurring pattern in which Kyagulanyi’s movements are met with force, despite constitutional guarantees of freedom of assembly, political participation and scheduled national electoral body presidential managed campaigns.
Police Issued Detailed Explanation Leaves A lot To Be Desired
By press time, police had released a comprehensive statement denying having applied live ammunition during the debacle. Their statement was devoid of whether any officers had been disarmed or detained pending investigations.
Human rights advocates insist that an independent inquiry is necessary, warning that the absence of accountability risks further escalation of violence as the 2026 election season intensifies.
Public Anger and Calls for Accountability
News of Dr. Lubuulwa’s victimisation spread quickly across Mbale and surrounding districts, igniting public anger and renewed calls for restraint by security forces. Activists argue that the shooting underscores a deeper crisis within Uganda’s policing of political activity bearing in mind candidate Museveni and president of Uganda’s recent warning to police and the army not to beat citizens.
“Citizens are being treated as enemies,” said one rights defender. “The role of the police is to protect life, not to extinguish it.”
As Uganda heads deeper into a highly charged electoral period, the fatal shooting of Dr. Hamza Lubuulwa stands as a stark reminder of the human cost of political repression—and the urgent need for security sector accountability.
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