The body language of the gathered leaders from the Peoples’ Front for Freedom (PFF) was ominous at today’s press conference.
When Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda, the pressure group’s spokesperson, said they would storm the offices of the Electoral Commission (EC) to protest the delay in registering the group as a political party, he said it with a smile.
Salaamu Musumba, who was standing on the left-hand side of Ssemujju, also smiled shyly. Harold Kaija, standing on the right, just looked straight into the handful of supporters gathered at Katonga, the group’s informal headquarters.
EC accused of using delaying tactics to register ‘Besigye’ party
Six months after the arrest of Dr. Kizza Besigye, a veteran politician and the driving force behind PFF, the pressure group has struggled for momentum and vibrancy.
The cries and anguish seen on the faces of some PFF leaders after Besigye and his co-accused Obeid Lutale were denied bail last week said it all.
Without Besigye’s charisma and fearlessness, PFF faces a huge task of establishing itself on Uganda’s landscape.
In early 2024, when the PFF embarked on an ambitious mission to register as a political party, supporters felt energized.
Besigye’s fiery speeches then ignited hope among his supporters that the birth of another formidable political organisation was on the horizon.
However, the tide turned dramatically on November 16, 2024, when Besigye was abducted in Nairobi, Kenya, driven to Kampala, and charged with offenses that many, including his legal team, decried as politically motivated.
Some people have argued that Besigye’s detention was a calculated strategy to give Museveni an “undue advantage” ahead of the January 2026 polls, afraid that PFF could shake his power.
The state and its apologists insist that Besigye was engaged in subversive activities in Kenya for which he was arrested.
Dynamic leader
Yet whatever the facts, the impact of Besigye’s arrest on the PFF was immediate and profound.
Besigye’s absence has stripped the group of its most dynamic leader, leaving a void that other figures have struggled to fill. Erias Lukwago, the Kampala Lord Mayor and acting president of the PFF, admitted in an interview with The East African that the detention had “derailed” the PFF’s election preparations.
The party registration process, which had been a cornerstone of PFF’s plans, stalled indefinitely. PFF insisted today that they had given the EC all the necessary documents but that the electoral body was playing delaying tactics.
The broader opposition landscape has felt the ripple effects. Besigye’s detention sparked outrage but also exposed the PFF’s vulnerabilities.
Critics argue that the PFF’s challenges run deeper than Besigye’s absence. The group’s roots in the FDC left it with structural weaknesses. Others say PFF’s focus on registering as a party has diverted resources from grassroots mobilization, leaving it unprepared for the sudden loss of its figurehead.
As the 2026 elections approach, the PFF faces an uphill battle. The group’s stalled registration has left it without a formal platform to contest, forcing leaders to rely on coalition-building with other opposition groups.
Several PFF members campaigned for NUP’s Elias Nalukoola during the concluded Kawempe North by-election, a move some saw as a ploy for them to establish good relations with the Kavule-based party, which is very popular in Buganda. But distrust among opposition factions, exacerbated by past rivalries, could complicate these efforts.
Some supporters and leaders, meanwhile, cling to hope that Besigye’s release could revive the PFF’s fortunes. Indeed, Salaamu Musumba admitted as much in today’s press briefing, saying Besigye would lead them when he is released from detention.
Besigye’s history of resilience—having faced multiple arrests and harassment since he started challenging Museveni in 2001—fuels this optimism.
Yet, with each passing month, the group’s momentum fades, and the 2026 elections draw closer. The PFF’s dream of challenging Museveni’s dominance now hangs in the balance, tethered to the fate of a man whose defiance has long defined Uganda’s opposition.
