The Opposition National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi, alias Bobi Wine, has issued a harrowing statement detailing what he described as “barbaric and inhumane” torture inflicted on his longtime bodyguard and aide, Edward Ssebufu, commonly known as Eddie Mutwe, while in military custody.
Speaking on Wednesday, May 7, after visiting Mutwe and three other detained NUP security guards (Achileo Kivumbi, Mugumya Gaddafi, and Wakabi Grace) at Masaka Main Prison, Bobi Wine said Eddie was still alive but in severe physical and psychological pain, following what he called “weeks of systematic torture” during incommunicado detention.
“Eddie Mutwe is alive – that’s the only good news,” Bobi Wine said in a statement. “He was electrocuted, waterboarded, stripped, beaten, and force-fed humiliation at the hands of military operatives.”
Eddie Mutwe, who was arrested on April 27, 2025, in Kiwango Village, Mukono District by armed security operatives, remained incommunicado for eight days before being arraigned in court in Masaka on May 5 and later remanded. His appearance in court followed increasing pressure from human rights advocates and opposition voices over his whereabouts.
In a Wednesday statement, Bobi Wine narrated how Eddie Mutwe was held in a military basement, waterboarded, electrocuted, stripped naked, and forced to kneel at gunpoint to pledge allegiance to President Museveni and his son, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
At one point, the NUP leader alleges, Gen. Muhoozi, also the CDF of Uganda’s armed forces, personally participated in the torture and mocked Mutwe for his physical condition while in handcuffs.
“Museveni’s son, Muhoozi Keinerugaba, came on the third day and personally participated in the torture. He challenged Eddie to fight him if he thinks he is strong. A man on handcuffs!” Bobi Wine wondered.
“He was made to wear Museveni’s t-shirt, injected with unknown substances, and denied water—being told to drink dirty blood-stained water on the floor,” the former Presidential candidate and runner-up added. “They cut his beard violently, flogged him daily, and blasted loud music to drown out his cries.”
Bobi Wine further revealed that Eddie Mutwe was interrogated in Runyakore, a language he did not understand, and beaten for every incorrect response. The physical abuse reportedly focused on his legs and feet, causing severe swelling that left him unable to walk unaided.
“They forced him to do press-ups, frog jumps, and took degrading pictures of him. He now struggles to sleep, haunted by the faces of the torturers,” he revealed, demanding that “Eddie Mutwe should be in a hospital, not in prison. His only crime is being loyal to a cause.”
Mutwe was previously among a group of over 30 NUP supporters charged with treason in 2018 following political violence in Arua. His name has become synonymous with political repression and the brutal treatment of opposition figures by Ugandan security agencies.
