Museveni Rejects ‘Bizeemu’ Claims, Defends Recent Security Operations

President Yoweri Museveni has defended the recent arrests of opposition politicians and other Ugandans by security agencies, saying the operations are intended to fight crime, corruption and impunity rather than undermine democracy.

In a televised national address on Saturday, July 4, Museveni said security agencies had stepped in to bridge weaknesses within State institutions, which he blamed on limited ideological commitment and capacity.

Although he did not refer to specific cases, the President said recent security operations had been wrongly portrayed as a return to the abuses of past governments.

“Security forces have come up to fill the gap. In the past I didn’t have enough cadres to fill this gap. This is a counter-offensive against corruption, crime and impunity,” he said.

Museveni argued that the operations remained lawful because suspects were eventually taken before court.

“Therefore, what the security forces have been doing recently is not a regression in the fight for freedom,” he said.

He dismissed claims that Uganda was sliding back into the practices of previous regimes.

“Those who have been putting out the slogan ‘Bizeemu’, that the bad things of the past are back, are wrong,” he said.

Museveni said the current situation differed from earlier periods in Uganda’s history, when political suspects often disappeared or were killed without appearing before court.

“The past meant that when someone got abducted would not come to court but would end up as a dead body in Namanve Forest or River Nile,” he said.

During the address, the President displayed images of public executions and human remains, saying they illustrated the brutality that characterised earlier governments.

Museveni also accused opposition veteran Dr Kizza Besigye of delaying his own trial since his arrest in November 2024.

“Take the case of Dr Besigye. He was arrested on November 17, 2024. It has been almost two years now. All this time, however, he’s been refusing trial; misusing the legal system,” he said.

The President questioned why Besigye, whom he described as a democrat and human rights activist, had declined to defend himself in court.

“Why would this democrat and human rights fighter spend so many calories on refusing to come for trial where he has an opportunity to prove his innocence and expose the undemocratic behaviour and dictatorship of Museveni and his family?” he said.

Museveni also criticised delays within the justice system, arguing that courts should not allow accused persons to postpone their trials for long periods.

“Why should the legal system for so long allow an accused person to refuse to be tried? Is that a good system?” he asked.

Besigye is facing charges of treason and misprision of treason.