The ongoing detention of Ayeranga Christopher Michael, a recently appointed Presidential Advisor for the Bunyoro region, has stretched into its third week.
Despite mounting pressure from family members, community leaders, and activists, Ayeranga remains held incommunicado by security forces, with no formal charges brought against him and no indication of when he will be released or presented in court.
Ayeranga was arrested on October 3rd, 2024, in Kampala by uniformed officers while having a meal.
He has since been held without access to legal counsel or family, a direct violation of Uganda’s Constitution. According to Article 23(4)(b), any detainee must be brought before a court within 48 hours, a mandate that the authorities have blatantly ignored in Ayeranga’s case.
In recent weeks, Ayeranga’s mother has publicly pleaded for justice, circulating videos on social media appealing directly to President Yoweri Museveni.
She expressed confidence that the President is aware of her son’s predicament, stating, “If my son has committed any crime, he should be produced in court. All we want is for him to have his day in court if there is a case to answer.”
While the exact location of Ayeranga’s detention remains unconfirmed, his family and community members suspect that he is being held at either the Defence Intelligence and Security headquarters in Mbuya, formerly known as CMI, or the Special Investigations Division (SID) in Kireka.
However, these institutions have yet to provide any official statement or acknowledgment of Ayeranga’s whereabouts.
As days pass with no response from the government, frustration is mounting within the Bunyoro community.
A coordinated campaign dubbed “Set Ayeranga Free” continues to call for his immediate release, and protests have escalated in the region, demanding justice and adherence to the rule of law.
Matia Kajura Amooti, a coordinator of the campaign, criticized the government’s handling of the case. “The continued illegal detention of Mr. Ayeranga is a gross violation of his constitutional rights. The people of Bunyoro will not rest until he is released or given his day in court,” he said in a recent statement.
