By BM
A chilling wave of concern is sweeping across Uganda as fears grow that opposition icon and veteran physician, Col (Rtd) Dr. Warren Kizza Besigye Kifefe, is gravely ill inside Luzira Maximum Security Prison.
Once again, Uganda stands at a moral crossroads—this time, not in the arena of politics, but in the sacred duty to preserve human life.
Dr. Besigye, a former military officer, four-time presidential candidate, and lifelong advocate for democracy, may be suffering in silence behind bars—his condition deteriorating while the state remains unmoved.
What makes this moment especially alarming is that the call for answers isn’t coming from politicians or activists, it’s coming from Uganda’s medical fraternity.
Leading the charge is Dr. Ekwaro Obuku, former President of the Uganda Medical Association (UMA), who has issued a fiery and impassioned appeal demanding immediate access to Dr. Besigye and urgent medical attention.
In his statement, Dr. Obuku insists that the Uganda Prisons Service must demonstrate its ability to offer the highest standard of care, particularly for a man of Besigye’s medical and national stature.
The demand is simple but resolute: the government must assemble a top-tier team of the nation’s finest medical professionals to assess and, if needed, restore Dr. Besigye’s health.
Earlier this year, more than 2,000 medical professionals signed a petition urging the state to release Dr. Besigye on medical grounds.
That petition was delivered to the highest offices, from State House to Parliament, from the Chief Justice to the Commissioner General of Prisons. Not one of them has responded.
Now, whispers have turned into wails.
Multiple sources, both official and informal indicate that Dr. Besigye may be in serious medical distress. Untreated. Possibly neglected. And cut off from specialized care.
The silence from Luzira is deafening. The state’s refusal to offer transparency has only deepened suspicion and outrage.
This time, the entire leadership of UMA has raised its voice in unison.
At the forefront is Dr. Herbert Luswata, the current UMA President, who has brought renewed urgency to the call for action.
UMA Secretary General Dr. Joel Mirembe has echoed these concerns, warning: if even a man of Besigye’s stature can be denied care, darker days may lie ahead for all.
Incoming leaders haven’t stayed silent either. Prof. Rubabinda Asiimwe, Dr. Asiphas Owaraganise, Dr. Henry Sekyanzi, and incoming Vice President Dr. Wilberforce Kabweru have all backed the petition.
From the Welfare Committee, Dr. David Mugyema has also joined the growing outcry.
These are not political agitators. They are Uganda’s most respected medical minds. Guardians of public health. Servants of life.
They are not asking for favours. They are demanding dignity, for one of their own.
Dr. Kizza Besigye is not just a political prisoner. He is a physician. A colleague. A man who once walked the halls of Uganda’s hospitals saving lives.
And now, many fear, his own life is slipping through the cracks of a system that has turned its back.
Though no longer holding formal office, Dr. Obuku’s voice remains piercing. His latest statement has jolted the nation:
“We are doctors. We serve with honour. If we cannot speak for one of our own in his hour of need, then we have betrayed the very essence of our profession.”
Uganda is watching. The international community is listening.
The question is no longer whether Dr. Besigye is unwell, but whether the government will continue to look the other way as a man who has given his life to this country, in both uniform and scrubs, suffers behind bars.
The doctors have spoken. The silence can no longer hold.
