PLP presidential aspirant Martha Karua held incommunicado at Uganda’s Entebbe Airport

Senior Counsel and PLP Presidential Aspirant Martha Karua has been detained at Entebbe International Airport after Ugandan authorities denied her entry into the country this morning. She had arrived aboard a Kenya Airways flight alongside the President of the Law Society of Kenya, Charles Kanjama, to attend a bail application ruling in the case against Elias Lukwago.

While Kanjama was permitted entry into the country, Karua, who currently serves as lead counsel in the treason case against Dr. Kizza Besigye, a prominent Ugandan opposition leader, and his co-accused, Obeid Lutale, was detained at the airport, according to on-ground teams. Karua was scheduled to return to Nairobi today but remains incommunicado.

Her senior team reports that she is unreachable, with her mobile phones switched off, and they continue to await direct communication regarding her status and expected return.

Karua, who is a Senior Counsel in Kenya is a member of both the Law Society of Kenya and the East Africa Law Society. She previously served as a cabinet minister in the Kenyan government holding several portfolios including Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs

In addition, she has been actively involved in Besigye’s case since his abduction in Nairobi on 16 November 2024, during her book launch, has continued to lead his defense under a valid legal practicing certificate issued in Uganda. Her certification is registered through the law firm of Erias Lukwago, the immediate former Lord Mayor of Kampala.

Lukwago, who serves as co-lead counsel alongside Karua in Besigye’s defense, was taken into custody during an early morning raid at his residence by the Ugandan Special Forces Command on 15 June 2026.

Following a period of incommunicado detention, he was subsequently charged with misprision of treason, the crime of concealing knowledge of a treasonous plot, inconnection to the charges facing Besigye.

Initial confirmation of Lukwago’s arrest and whereabouts was made public through a social media post by Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, on his official X account.

After being processed, she is expected to arrive back in the country later today. The party, however, has expressed its strongest objection and deep condemnation over what it describes as the unlawful detention and forcible deportation of its leader.