The National Unity Platform (NUP) has condemned the torture of Edward Ssebuufu, also known as Eddie Mutwe, by military authorities, calling the disturbing images shared online “shocking, distressing, and disgusting”—but also powerful future evidence against perpetrators of state brutality.
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya decried the photos circulating on social media that show Mutwe—who serves as chief bodyguard to party president Robert Kyagulanyi (Bobi Wine)—in apparent military detention, with a shaved head and a visibly distressed expression.
The image of a clean-shaven, semi-naked Eddie Mutwe drenched in sweat was first shared by the Chief of Defence Forces, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who claimed the captive was being held in Makindye Military Barracks and “taught Runyankore.”
Muhoozi has since used social media to issue a series of inflammatory remarks targeting NUP supporters and their leader.
“I have only ONE warning to NUP's so-called 'Foot Soldiers',” he posted. “If I can arrest your so-called 'Commander' like nsenene (grasshopper), imagine what I will do to you. You either disband or you will—” the tweet ended ominously.
In another post, Muhoozi directly threatened Bobi Wine: “You are next Kabobi! Remember Arua? How you were crying for Barbie to save you? This time I will have your balls...”
He also mocked Mutwe’s detention, declaring, “I will only release Eddie to Mzee (his father President Museveni), when he gives me the order. He would have learnt the history of NRA/UPDF by then. And will understand that NRM is a party that represents the whole country. It can never be defeated.”
Rubongoya described the photos and comments as an unprecedented window into torture practices usually hidden from public view.
“In the past, people were only able to access and take pictures of Makindye Military Barracks and the State Research Bureau after the regimes fell,” he wrote.
“Today, we're treated to pictures and gross narrations of what happens in the torture chambers. We also have someone taking credit for the torture, hence admitting responsibility for crimes against humanity.”
He added: “Maybe these pictures and the accompanying tweets will one day be used as evidence in a court of law. Give it time.”
Kyagulanyi also posted a personal message, calling Mutwe’s ordeal emblematic of broader state repression.
“Eddie Mutwe is all of us. Today it is him, tomorrow it could be any one of us,” he wrote.
“Museveni's brutal son is illegally holding, torturing, and dehumanising him while he boasts about it.”
He said Mutwe represents “all of us who dare to dream of a just and free country” and urged Ugandans not to sink into despair.
“All Ugandans of good conscience must come together and coalesce around the values that bring us together as a people.”
Kyagulanyi called on the public to join him and the NUP in a solidarity gathering for Mutwe and other political prisoners.
The event, scheduled for 2pm at Makerere–Kavule on Friday, was framed as a non-partisan show of unity and resolve.
“Let us come together in solidarity not just with Eddie but all political prisoners!” he wrote.
The Nile Post is not immediately sure if the gathering has kicked off.
The calls come amid mounting criticism of the Ugandan military over the treatment of opposition figures and the growing use of social media by senior officers to mock and intimidate detainees.
Mutwe had been missing since April 27 until Gen. Muhoozi’s post appeared to confirm his detention under the Special Forces Command, sparking widespread outrage.
As the legal and human rights communities demand accountability, NUP’s leadership is rallying public support to ensure that, even in pain, the moment is not forgotten.
“There is a silver lining,” Rubongoya wrote. “In this triumphant praise of brutality, the world is provided with evidence that has long been hidden in the shadows.”