The families of Kenyan activists Nicholas Oyoo and Bob Njagi, who went missing in Kampala’s Kireka area, are growing increasingly desperate as the search for their loved ones enters another day with no breakthrough.
Speaking on Tuesday, October 7, Elsie Oyoo-Ojuando, a cousin of Nicholas and an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, described the emotional toll the disappearance has taken on their families, revealing that both activists’ mothers are in poor health.
Elsie said Nicholas’s 74-year-old mother has been struggling to cope with anxiety and fear over her son’s fate.
“It’s quite bad; Nicholas’ mother is not young – she’s 74 and has not appeared in the media because her health is failing. She is not hospitalized but very anxious. Anything anyone does, she panics, thinking it might endanger him. It has disrupted our lives,” she said.
The situation is even worse for Njagi’s mother, who Elsie revealed is currently hospitalized.
“Njagi’s mother was already unwell before the abduction, and this ordeal has made it worse,” she added.
Addressing allegations that the activists were in Uganda illegally, Elsie firmly dismissed the claims as false.
“They are not lawless people; they are very lawful and everything they do is according to the law. I have seen copies of their passports with valid entry stamps. They went there legitimately and were not there to create civil unrest,” she said.
Elsie urged Ugandan authorities to respect international human rights standards and ensure the activists’ safety.
“To the Ugandan authorities, it is very important to respect human rights. The 1948 Human Rights Declaration and subsequent conventions call for the protection of life and liberty everywhere. Safeguarding people’s freedoms is what guarantees peace,” she emphasized.
Ugandan Police Deny Holding Oyoo and Njagi
The two activists reportedly disappeared shortly after traveling to Uganda to show solidarity with Bobi Wine’s opposition movement ahead of the 2026 presidential elections.
However, the Ugandan Police Force (UPF) has denied any involvement in the abduction or detention of the two Kenyans.
Speaking on Monday, October 6, UPF Spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke said he had not received any official briefing confirming that Oyoo and Njagi were in police custody.
“The Kenyan activists who are alleged to have come to join in a rally in Uganda and disappeared…I have not been briefed by the police that we have them in our custody. If I had, I would have volunteered that information without hesitation,” he said.
Rusoke further stated that the police have not received any formal reports declaring Oyoo and Njagi as missing persons.
“I also don’t know if it has been reported formally that they are lost persons or missing persons,” he added.
Meanwhile, the families continue to appeal for urgent intervention from both the Kenyan and Ugandan governments, urging them to help locate the missing men and bring them home safely.
The post ‘We Just Want Them Back’: Mothers of Missing Activists Oyoo and Njagi Fall Ill with Worry appeared first on Nairobi Wire.
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