Politics 8 April 2026 The Observer (Uganda)
Imprisoned NUP Leader Mufumbiro Requests Leave to Bury Wife
Alex Waiswa Mufumbiro, NUP's deputy spokesperson detained at Luzira Prison, has appealed to Chief Justice Flavian Zeija for permission to attend his wife Edith Katende's burial on Saturday after her death from breast cancer. Party officials and lawyers are pushing for bail or special prison leave amid claims of political persecution. Source: https://observer.ug/news/jailed-mufumbiro-seeks-permission-to-attend-wifes-burial
Alex Waiswa Mufumbiro, the deputy spokesperson for the National Unity Platform (NUP), is seeking court approval to attend the funeral of his wife, Edith Katende Mufumbiro, who succumbed to breast cancer.
Mufumbiro has been held at Luzira Upper Prison since September 2025, arrested with other party members over suspected illegal military training at NUP’s Makerere Kavule offices.
NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya described Mufumbiro as deeply upset, learning of the death via inmates’ radios and later consoled by prison staff during a visit.
NUP leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu shared news of Edith’s passing on X, criticizing the ongoing detention of opposition members and noting Mufumbiro’s absence from the alleged incident site, alongside repeated bail denials.
The plea to Chief Justice Flavian Zeija requests attendance at the Luuka District burial, paired with a bail hearing set for Friday. Lawyer George Musisi outlined options including court bail or temporary release from the prisons commissioner general under supervision.
Musisi called the charges bailable and politically driven, warning that refusal could harm the judiciary and prisons’ reputation, especially given past denials for other opposition detainees.
The couple wed on May 16, 2022, at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Namirembe.
Source: The Observer (Uganda)