The Nakawa Chief Magistrate’s Court has granted Shs500,000 cash bail to Johnmary Ssebuwuufu, a member of the National Unity Platform (NUP) Electoral Management Committee and Nakawa Division Lord Councilor, after spending months on remand at Luzira Prison over charges of incitement to violence.
Ssebuwuufu, who was arrested on January 14, 2026, a day before the general elections, faced allegations of encouraging attacks on supporters of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) in several districts. On Tuesday, the court allowed his release on bail.
The court also instructed Ssebuwuufu to upload his National ID on the Electronic Court Case Management Information System (ECCMIS), but he reported losing it during his arrest.
Following his initial detention by security forces, Ssebuwuufu was held in an undisclosed facility before being arraigned at Nakawa Court on February 6, 2026, on charges of incitement to violence under Section 79(1) of the Penal Code Act, Cap 128—charges he denied.
According to the prosecution, between November and December 2025, Ssebuwuufu allegedly incited people in Kampala, Mukono, Masaka, and Mpigi to attack NRM supporters.
Ssebuwuufu is among four senior NUP leaders facing similar charges related to the 2026 elections. Three of them have been granted bail, while Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, Butambala County MP and NUP Vice President for the Central Region, remains in custody at Kitalya Prison.
Kivumbi’s terrorism case, alongside 24 others including two minors, is currently being heard before the Butambala Chief Magistrate’s Court under Magistrate Deogratius Ssejjemba.
