By Hanning Mbabazi
ARUA: Police in Arua summoned and arrested Mr. Omar Risasi Amabua 70 years, on Tuesday to record a statement over allegations of stoning President Museveni’s car and smashing its hind door glass 10 months ago.
Omar was later detained by police before he was ransferred to Gulu Prison as investigations continue.
West Nile Regional Police Commander, Christopher Barugahare, confirmed they preferred treason charges against him.
“We arrested him (Amabua) because he was implicated in last year’s fracas where the President’s car was stoned,” Mr Barugahare said, referring to the August 13, 2018 mayhem on the last day of campaigns for Arua Municipality parliamentary by-election that fell vacant following the brutal killing of then incumbent MP Ibrahim Abiriga alongside his brother and in Kawanda, Wakiso District,
“The arrest of the mzee is madness and total witch-hunt,” MP Kasiano Wadri said yesterday.
The suspect, according to the MP, is being victimised because he on the fateful day guarded the seats and podium for his(Wadri) last rally at Arua Prisons cell.
“That venue of my last rally was far from [Ediofe] road [where the presidential motorcade encountered the supports]. Did the mzee use magic to stone Museveni’s car?” Wadri wondered.
Our investigations show that Amabua was discharged from Arua hospital only a fortnight ago where he was treated for diabetes.
State House and police said a President’s luggage vehicle was pelted with stones by the Opposition supporters, and Special Forces Command soldiers launched a retributive brutal crackdown during which they arrested 36 people, among them MPs and journalists.
MP Wadri, Kyagulanyi Ssentamu and the Mityana Municipality counterpart, Mr Francis Zaake, alongside 31 others, have since been charged with treason over the alleged vandalisation of the President’s car.
Yasin Kawuma, a driver to Kyadondo East legislator Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, who was in Arua to boost Mr Wadri’s vote-canvassing, was shot dead.
