Solomon Serwanjja, the executive director of the African Institute for Investigative Journalism (AIIJ), has become the latest person to be summoned by police in what appears to be a widening crackdown on civil society organisations in the media, governance and human rights space.
Serwanjja founded AIIJ in 2021, an organisation dedicated to training and building the capacity of investigative journalists across Uganda.
Sources told Bbeg Media that since the accounts of his organisation were frozen in January, Serwanajja was forced to let go of most of his staff.
Serwanjja is expected to make a statement at Natete Police Station next week, probably June 30, sources said.
His summons came a day after Agather Atuhaire, the team lead at Agora Discourse, and her colleague Godwin Toko were called in by the police to record statements in connection with allegations of fraud and money laundering.
Today, Toko appeared at KMP North Regional headquarters at Kawempe were he made a statement in relation to the charges. Atuhaire will record her statement on Tuesday, June 30.
“I guess we should be grateful that a whole army didn’t come to raid our homes and disappear us for days, but we were decently summoned to answer whatever questions they have. That means the authorities didn’t forget what the law requires, so we hope this is how every Ugandan will be treated going forward,” Atuhaire wrote on her X handle today.
Atuhaire is a lawyer, journalist and human rights activist known for her work on social justice and accountability through digital campaigning.
Sources with knowledge of the matter told us that managers at the African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME) and the Human Rights Network for Journalists (HRNJ) are also expected to receive similar summons.
Like AIIJ and Agora, both organisations had their accounts frozen and were effectively shut down before the January elections.
The pattern of the summons appears deliberate. All the organisations being targeted had their accounts frozen before the general elections, and several were closed down during that period.
Government freezes bank accounts of Serwanjja, Agather’s organisations
The home of veteran politician and activist Miria Matembe was raided this week by security operatives in Luzira. According to her husband, Nehemiah Matembe, the operatives searched the residence, including the couple’s bedroom, without identifying themselves or explaining the purpose of their visit before leaving empty-handed.
Matembe has publicly criticised the Chief of Defence Forces, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, accusing him of misusing the military in political disputes and undermining state institutions.
