East African Varsity students unite to ask President Museveni to release Kiiza Besigye

Students from Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania have shown remarkable courage in asking Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to release his long-term opposition leader, Dr Kizza Besigye, on humanitarian grounds.

Under the unifying umbrella of the East Africa University Students Fraternity (EAUF), the students collectively appealed to President Ruto to intervene to release Uganda’s opposition leader, Kiiza Besigye.

“We young people are told that it is taboo to beat a person who ran into your roof for security even if you know that he is a thief, but our country abused this one concerning Dr Besgye,” said Paul Odhiambo.

During their three-day annual retreat, the concerned students spoke to Education News in Tarime, a town near Migori County.

Those from Uganda, led by Joshua Musasula, reminded President Museveni about his long-old friendship with Dr.Besyge. Then, they burrowed the grudges and forged a way forward for peace and a prosperous Uganda.

They reminded President Museveni of the great role the family of Dr Besgye’s wife played in his upbringing and asked him to “return the hand” by unconditionally releasing Dr Besiyge.

The students narrated a first-hand story about how President Museveni was partly brought up by Dr Besiyge’s father-in-law, the late Boniface Byanyima, who financed his education as he studied and learned his character from childhood.

“When Museveni left for the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, he would always return to Mzee Byanyima’s home for holidays, and even when he went to the bush to fight President Obote, he got support from the home,” said Musasula.

In an interview excerpt by “The Observer” Journalist, the late Byanyima narrated Museveni’s attachment to his family.

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He says that during Museveni’s stay at their home, he developed a close relationship with and admiration for his daughter Winnie, who later became his advisor.

Museveni once proposed Marriage to Winnie, but Mzee Boniface Byanyima rejected the proposal and instead allowed her to marry Dr Besigye. Perhaps this partly explains the bitterness between Museveni and Besigye.

In a later interview with the Observer, Mzee Byanyima said he rejected Museveni’s marriage proposal to his daughter because of claims that Museveni was not trustworthy.

“When he was a young man, he was not straight, and even now, he is not straight. When Museveni says 10 words, you can’t trust them all. Perhaps only two are correct.” said Mzee Byanyima.” He wanted to marry my daughter, which I opposed, and told my daughter that Museveni was not a reliable character,” he concluded.

Apart from that, President Museveni’s father, Amos Kaguta, was sent to Mzee Byanyima’s home in 1980 to propose marriage between his son President Museveni and Winnie, but it was again in vain.

Character

“First, his father, Amos Kaguta, came in 1980 to propose, but I said no. Then Museveni came here in 1987 when he was president. I said I can’t agree. I said it would be her responsibility if you agreed to marry her if she wanted it. Me, I don’t want that,” he said.

Mzee Boniface says that President Museveni was madly in love with Winnie. He stood firm against the marriage because President Museveni was not a reliable character.

As it was a tradition in those days for a daughter not to defy her father’s counsel, Winnie refused to marry Museveni and instead married Besigye in 1999.

Paradoxically, President Museveni persisted in getting Winnie’s consent to marry him when he was already married to his present wife, Janet Museveni, Uganda’s Minister for Education.

At one time, the former Vice President of Kenya, the late Prof George Saitoti, said there was a time when the country and its wishes were much more important than the wishes of an individual. It was argued that it was high time President Museveni shelved his personal vendetta with Dr Besigye and released him for the common prosperity of Uganda and the rest of East Africa.

By Enock Okong’o