Two Kenyan activists, Bob Njagi and Nicholas Oyoo, have gone missing following an alleged abduction by armed individuals in Uganda on Wednesday afternoon.
It remains uncertain who the four kidnappers were, according to authorities.
Two individuals who had joined the campaign trail of National Unity Platform presidential candidate Bobi Wine on Tuesday were allegedly taken into a car, and their mobile devices were turned off.
Bobi Wine verified the event and criticized it on Wednesday, shortly after it occurred.
We strongly denounce the kidnapping of Kenyan activists and human rights advocates Bob Nyagi and Nicholas Ayoo by armed individuals. The two were taken in a mob-style operation this afternoon from a gas station in Kireka and driven away to an unspecified location!
"We denounce the ongoing lawlessness by the rogue government and call for the immediate and unconditional release of these brothers! The criminal regime apparently kidnapped them merely for associating with me and showing support for our cause," he stated in a social media post.
The The chairman of the Free Kenya Movement, Bob Njagi Bobi, was previously seen in a video from Wine's campaign event held in Kamuli District, Eastern Uganda on Tuesday.
Bobi Wine aims to replace President Yoweri Museveni.
In other videos, Njagi is shown paying close attention to Bobi Wine, and occasionally accompanying his group as they moved through rural regions.
The companions of the missing activists stated that they departed Kenya on Monday and traveled to Uganda along with two Ugandans.
After arriving in Kampala, the Ugandan team returned home, leaving the three Kenyans to join Bobi Wine's campaign.
On Tuesday, they traveled through Buyende and Kamuli, accompanied by NUP officials, as they campaigned for the 2026 presidential elections.
On Wednesday, the group made a stop at a gas station to fix their vehicle when things took a turn for the worse.
Approximately 3 p.m., a group of individuals arrived in a gray van, and others exited carrying firearms. There were four of them.Another woman was sitting ahead; they took Bob and Oyoo Ochieng, the secretary general of the Free Kenya Movement," a witness reported.
The witness was also detained but subsequently let go.
The witness added, 'I told them my car wasn't locked, that I couldn't go somewhere I didn't know, and then they asked me to just get out and go lock my car.'
The attackers drove away, and shortly after, Njagi and Oyoo's phones were turned off.
A colleague of theirs mentioned that he had informed the authorities, worried about his own safety.
No official statement was provided by Kenyan authorities or individuals in Uganda.
These types of events are frequent in the area.
The reported kidnapping occurred only four months following the arrest of Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi and Ugandan activist Agather Atuhaire in Tanzania, after which they were left near the borders of their respective nations.
Both later alleged that they were sexually abused by Tanzanian officials.
Last year, Njagi was taken together with the Longton brothers due to suspected connections with anti-government demonstrations and remained missing for over a month.
They were later released.
Posting Komentar