The family of Bob Njagi, a Kenyan activist who was abducted alongside Nicholas Oyoo in Uganda, has revealed the tough conditions they were forced to accept before their son’s release.
Njagi and Oyoo were reportedly detained by Ugandan security agents for over a month under unclear circumstances.
Speaking on Saturday after Njagi’s return, his father, Frank Njagi, disclosed that Ugandan authorities had initially planned to detain the two Kenyans until after the country’s January elections.
He said the move was aimed at preventing them from engaging in political activities that could be perceived as opposition to President Yoweri Museveni’s government.
Uganda's Demands
According to the family, Ugandan officials made it clear that Njagi and Oyoo were being held to discourage any future involvement in campaigns against Museveni’s administration or his allies. This prompted the family to negotiate for their release through diplomatic and personal channels.
“We were told that the intention was to keep them in custody until after the elections. We had to promise that once released, he would never go back to Uganda to campaign for President Museveni’s opponents,” Frank Njagi said.
The family revealed that the negotiations were tense, with Ugandan officials insisting on written assurances from intermediaries that Njagi would refrain from political engagements across the border.
Uhuru Kenyatta's Intervention
Njagi’s father further disclosed that the family sought help from both the Kenyan government and influential figures, among them said to be former President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was among those who reached out to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and his son General Muhoozi Kainerugaba to intervene in the matter.
The negotiations are also said to have involved Museveni's spouse, Janet Museveni, before things started moving.
Nairobi Position
Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi confirmed that Nairobi had written to Kampala demanding information about the two Kenyans’ whereabouts, adding that his ministry liaised directly with Ugandan Foreign Affairs Minister Odongo Abubakar to secure their release.
Meanwhile, Njagi, while recounting his ordeal, said they were detained by military officers who operated under a special command.
“We had been abducted by the military, who kept us under a special unit. We never knew we would make it back home,” he said.
The two were abducted in Kira, Kampala, on October 1 and held in undisclosed locations for 38 days. They were finally handed over to Kenyan authorities at the Busia Border on November 7.
