At around 1 pm Dr. Kizza Besigye sneaked to the Mini-price area of downtown Kampala where he was cut off by the Police. Business came to a standstill as the Police tried to tow away the former Presidential candidate’s car. ‘’The Police are towing Dr. Besigye’s car the former Presidential candidate and on all over the sides, people are chanting his name and others are saying Togikwako or do not tamper with the Constitution’’. Bullets were fired to disperse the people who had allegedly pelted the Police with stones. Besigye was towed away in his car to the Central Police Station where he spent the entire afternoon.
Earlier, near the Parliament’s main gate, a group of activists led by KCCA Councilor Muhammad Ssegirinya standing in the neighboring KCCA headquarters’ compound exchanged words with the Police officers who had denied them entry into the Parliament. After an exchange with the Police, pepper spray was used to disperse them. Shortly thereafter, the Police entered Kampala City Council Authority premises and arrested two of the suspected protestors. During the day, Anti-riot, Regular, Counter-Terrorism and Military Police were deployed around the Parliament to prevent any anticipated demonstrations. The Canine department of the Police was also deployed to sniff for explosives and beef-up the force. A group of heavily guilty men in plain clothes who had several times been deployed alongside the Police were also seen on the streets. others remained inside the compound of the Parliament.
NTV spoke to some of the MPs and the locals on what they made of the heavy deployment. “We shall assert ourselves as members of the Parliament and we can only be a civilian Parliament in a conducive environment, this is not a Military installation and I don’t think we are under attack by population. If anybody is scared of the population, it’s their trouble, and they should act well.” Said, Mathius Mpuuga – Masaka Municipality MP. “President Museveni saying that he brought the peace in Uganda, this is not peace.” “The Police and the Army should be deployed in Entebbe, where women have been murdered.” The heavy Police deployment followed the weeks of bitter exchanges and demonstrations by different politicians in groups opposed to the removal of the age limit cap from the Constitution ahead of an anticipated motion in the Parliament on the matter.
