The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party has condemned what it describes as selective application of the law and the weaponization of the criminal justice system to stifle opposition, saying the right to protest is being treated as a monopoly for the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) and the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU).
According to Walid Lubega, the FDC party Deputy Secretary for Publicity, the 1995 Constitution is clear on the freedom to demonstrate, and that right belongs to all Ugandans.
He made the remarks while addressing journalists on Monday, September 21st, 2026, at the party headquarters in Najjanankumbi along Entebbe Road.
“The 1995 Constitution of Uganda is clear. Article 29 guarantees every Ugandan the freedom of assembly, demonstration and peaceful protest. It does not say this right is reserved for the NRM or its new appendage, the PLU. It says every citizen,” Lubega said.
He pointed to last week’s PLU protest at the Turkish Embassy in Kololo, which he said was state-sponsored and facilitated with police escort, without teargas or arrests, as evidence of double standards.
“We all witnessed the state-sponsored PLU protest at the Turkish Embassy in Kololo with police escort, no teargas and no arrests which exposes the double standards in Uganda.The same police force cordons off Najjanankumbi, Katonga and Kavule and criminalizes every protest as unlawful assembly,” Lubega noted.
According to Lubega, this proves that the constitutional right under Article 29 is no longer being applied equally.
“The right to demonstrate is now a monopoly exclusively enjoyed by those in yellow and their PLU cousins. When the NRM and PLU want to march, the police escorts them. Roads are closed for them. They are given teargas protection, not teargas,” he added.
He contrasted this with the treatment of opposition protests over the high cost of living, the giveaway of Constitutional Square, abductions and electoral theft.
Lubega also called on the Uganda Police Force, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions and the Judiciary to uphold the Constitution rather than act as partisan tools.
“If Uganda desires to be a democracy, the right to protest cannot be rationed by the IGP or by State House. A protest by FDC is as lawful as a march by PLU. We condemn in the strongest terms this double standard. You swore to uphold the Constitution, not the NRM manifesto,” Lubega said.
However, police authorities have since stated that some opposition leaders want to use force to protest without permission from the security agencies, adding that some upon investigation have ill hidden agendas to protest, which is unconstitutional.
Meanwhile, FDC maintains that the struggle for good governance will not be stopped by teargas and handcuffs.
