Gen Saleh Reportedly Leading Talks To Secure Release of Dr.Besigye

Gen Salim Saleh, the national coordinator of the Operation Wealth Creation is reported to be leading the intense negotiations which involve political figures, religious leaders and senior citizens.

Talks began last week, according to the New Vision. They involve figures from the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), the People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) and the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC).

A committee of eminent persons will support Saleh, the overall coordinator of Operation Wealth Creation, in handling the negotiations. The opposition has also assembled a team to engage his group.

There was no word yet on the proposed terms of Besigye’s release or a date for concluding the talks.

FDC deputy spokesperson Walid Mulindwa confirmed the negotiations to the newspaper. He said leaders of the Inter-Party Organisation for Dialogue (IPOD) were also involved.

According to Mulindwa, IPOD council members, who include political party secretaries-general, have discussed Besigye’s release. He said the matter would feature on the agenda when the organisation’s summit meets.

News Gen Saleh pleads for Otafire as Muhoozi insists on arrest However, the reported negotiations have divided some figures within PFF. The Weekend Vision quotes an unnamed senior party leader saying some members want the courts to determine the matter, while others support political engagement to secure release.

The talks follow remarks by Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba on August 25, linking Besigye’s fate to Saleh.

“Dr KB will be handled by Afande Saleh. If he wants forgiveness, he should talk to Afande Saleh,” Kainerugaba said, according to the newspaper. He also claimed President Yoweri Museveni had given Saleh authority to handle the matter.

Besigye has been in custody since his arrest in Nairobi, Kenya, on November 16, 2024, and subsequent transfer to Uganda. He faces treason charges alongside his aide, Obeid Lutale, and UPDF Capt Denis Oola.

Their High Court trial remains at the prosecution stage before Justice Emmanuel Baguma. The State alleges that they participated in meetings in Uganda and abroad to plan the government’s overthrow by force. The accused deny the allegations.

The first prosecution witness, Andrew Wilson, also known as Orlando, completed his testimony on September 17, 2026, after cross-examination by defence lawyers and re-examination by the State. His evidence included secretly recorded conversations that prosecutors say support their case. The defence challenged his accounts and the handling and identification of the recordings.

The hearing was subsequently adjourned on September 23 to October 5, 2026, after State lawyers failed to appear at the agreed time. Baguma criticised the delay. The reported release negotiations therefore come as the court awaits the continuation of the prosecution’s evidence.