The Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has denied claims that soldiers from the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and the Special Forces Command (SFC) assaulted Ms Barbie Itungo, the wife of National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine.
Over the weekend, Ms Itungo said dozens of soldiers, some in uniform and others in plain clothes, broke into her home and harassed her while demanding to know the whereabouts of her husband.
Speaking to the media from her hospital bed at Nsambya Hospital, she claimed she was strangled and left in pain.
However, Gen Muhoozi dismissed the allegations, insisting that soldiers did not beat Ms Itungo.
“My soldiers did not beat up Barbie...Kabobi’s (Bobi) wife. First of all, we do not beat up women. They are not worth our time,” he wrote on X.
His remarks come days after the presidential elections held on January 14, which President Museveni won with 71.65 per cent of the vote.
Mr Kyagulanyi, who came second, later rejected the results, describing the election as a sham and alleging widespread rigging by the regime.
Since election day, Mr Kyagulanyi has not appeared in public, citing fears for his life. The NUP principal has been communicating through social media, where he has continued to update supporters about his situation.
On Monday, Gen Muhoozi said security forces were pursuing Mr Kyagulanyi and denied any involvement with his wife.
“We are looking for her cowardly husband not her,” Gen Muhoozi said.
The development comes amid claims by Gen Muhoozi that security agencies have arrested thousands of NUP supporters whom he accused of planning to destabilise the country.
“We have arrested over 2,000 hooligans that Kabobi thought he would use,” he said.
