MP Shamim Malende demands action as Muwanga Kivumbi goes missing for six days

Kampala Woman MP, Shamim Malende, has criticised Attorney General Sam Mayanja for defending the performance of the Uganda Human Rights Commission (UHRC).

Malende, of the National Unity Platform (NUP), told journalists at Parliament she was not convinced by Mayanja’s defence of the commission, arguing that it had failed to effectively protect the rights of citizens.

“We are still not convinced by the explanations from Sam Mayanja about the role of the commission because, instead of protecting our rights, it appears that rights continue to be violated,” Malende said.

She said the opposition remained concerned about the whereabouts of NUP leader Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, whom she claimed could not be accessed by his family, lawyers or doctors.

Malende accused UHRC of doing little to investigate complaints of human rights violations involving opposition supporters and other Ugandans.

She alleged that security agencies, including the army and the police, had continued to violate the rights of citizens without adequate intervention from the commission.

According to Malende, the government has been at the centre of many of the alleged violations by arresting opposition members on what she described as trumped-up charges, delaying their bail applications and denying them access to lawyers, doctors and family members.

During the debate, Speaker Jacob Oboth Oboth directed Mayanja to work with opposition representatives to help Muwanga Kivumbi’s family gain access to him.

Malende said she would continue offering legal services on a pro bono basis to vulnerable Ugandans whose rights had been violated.

She also questioned the commission’s performance despite receiving funding from Parliament. She said it had failed to compensate victims of human rights abuses, had accumulated a large case backlog, and had done little in research, public education, and awareness on human rights.

Malende also disputed statements regarding reports that UHRC chairperson Mariam Wangadya had resigned.

She accused Mayanja of making contradictory statements on the matter.

“It is not true that the commission chairperson resigned. She only submitted a notice of her intention to resign to the president, citing intimidation and investigations by the Inspectorate of Government,” Malende said.

Mayanja, however, denied claims that Wangadya or other commissioners were under investigation.

He said that if such investigations existed, a report would have been presented before Parliament, which he said had not happened.