Senior counsel Marth Karua has guided and directed the leadership of the People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) to make sure that whatever decision they take concerning the coming 2026 general elections should be based on fighting to rescue their founding leader Dr Kizza Besigye from prison.
A tough speaking Karua, a celebrated Kenyan opposition leader told PFF leadership including Kampala Lord Mayor Ssalongo Erias Lukwago that they should not misuse the coming election or drag Besigye into it warning that any careless mistake committed will result into Besigye’s conviction and life imprisonment by President Museveni’s government.
She told them that in several one on one conversations with Besigye as his chief legal leader, he openly confirmed to him that Museveni is imprisoning him because he sees him as a threat to his political transition which involves plotting to have his son Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba to replace him as the next President of Uganda.
Harua argued that he is very sure that Besigye is still the only active politician who can mobilize against President Museveni’s clandestine political move.
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Karua’s submissions fuelled Besigye’s foot soldiers who have been fighting for their man to contest against Museveni from prison even though there have been forces within PFF who want to front Gen Mugisha Muntu of the Alliance for National Transition (ANT) as their presidential candidate since they made a political coalition.
This website understands that several meetings have been held in several locations to discuss how they are going to cooperate in the coming elections.
In one of the meetings, they reached a consensus where 70% supported the idea of fronting Muntu and his people have already started collecting signatures from the public recommending him to stand in the coming presidential elections.
Fronting Gen Muntu as a coalition presidential candidate was softened after Lukwago declared that he is going to contest as Kampala Lord mayor again. The other PFF heavyweight Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda has already declared that he is going to reclaim his Kira Municipality Member of parliament seat come 2026.
However radical activities in PFF especially the youths are still insisting that Besigye should contest for presidency because that is the only way Museveni will be exposed internationally and be forced to release his political opponent from prison so as to create a levelled ground for all contestants.
Recently, when Alice Alaso who is leading the ANT delegations in the ongoing negotiations briefed Gen Muntu of the new developments in their discussions, Muntu advised them to be very careful at this stage and if possible, let them pray for a meeting with Dr Besigye personally in prison so that they talk about the issue of fronting a joint candidate.
Highly placed sources within the ongoing discussions told this website that Besigye should put in writing any agreement he makes with his team concerning the issue of fronting a single candidate.
When the message was given back to Lukwago, he drove to Luzira prison to have a meeting with Dr Besigye over the matter.
However, Besigye declined to put it in writing as Muntu wanted. He told Lukwago that as a party, they have the powers to make decisions in his absence. He reiterated to him his 2021 stance that for him, he no longer believes in elections organized by Museveni government.
Ssemujju told this website that even though they have the supreme council of eminent leaders, Besigye’s word is final on any decision. He confirmed to us that he has been briefed on all the ongoing political negotiations and Besigye always guides them on what to do.
The development comes at a time when controversial High Court judge Emmanuel Baguma set 1st October 2025 as the date to kick-off the hearing of the treason and other criminal charges against Besigye, his political assistant Hajji Obed Kamulegeya Lutale and Captain Denis Oola even though the suspects and their lawyers are still protesting his decision to stay in their matter claiming the do not expect any fairness from him
In 2024, Besigye and Lutale were kidnapped in Kenya by Ugandan security operatives and charged before the defunct Court Martial with charges related to plotting to assassinate president Museveni and poison unnamed government officials.
