Uganda: University Student Jailed for Accusing Yoweri Museveni of Murder in TikTok Clip
- A university student was sentenced to jail following a court case involving the Cyber Misuse Act and President Yoweri Museveni
- The sentencing followed the student's guilty plea after his video sparked legal action, raising questions about digital speech boundaries in Uganda
- His sentencing added to the growing list of TikTok users prosecuted over online content deemed offensive by authorities
Nancy Odindo, a TUKO.co.ke journalist, has over four years of experience covering Kenyan politics, news, and features for digital and print media.
A third-year student at Makerere University has been sentenced to two months in prison after pleading guilty to charges of offensive communication.
Source: Facebook
The sentencing stemmed from a TikTok video posted in May 2025, in which Elson Tumwine made controversial remarks about President Yoweri Museveni and Speaker of Parliament Anita Among.
Tumwine, a student at the College of Agricultural Services, was arraigned before Grade One Magistrate Tibayeta Edgar Tusiime at the Entebbe Magistrate's Court.
He had reportedly gone missing for weeks before reappearing in court. Tumwine was last seen on June 8 in Hoima, where he was undertaking an internship programme.
Source: Facebook
What did Elson Tumwine accuse Museveni of?
According to the prosecution, led by Ahebwa Byaruhanga Paul, Tumwine posted the video in which he accused Museveni of favouring the Baganda community while ignoring other regions.
In the video, Tumwine alleged that Museveni had burned a train full of civilians in Mukura, Teso region, and with the help of Rwandan soldiers, killed and dumped thousands of people in a swamp near Soroti University.
“As per Anita Among and President Museveni, he apologised to the Baganda, as if that were the only community he ever wronged. Museveni burned a train full of people in Mukura, in the Teso region; a thousand were killed and dumped in a swamp near Soroti University by Rwandan soldiers who came to assist him,” the video allegedly stated.
The prosecution argued that Tumwine's video was intended to ridicule, demean, and incite hostility toward the president and the speaker.
In his ruling, Magistrate Tusiime noted that Tumwine pleaded guilty and expressed remorse, which was taken into account during sentencing.
According to The Monitor, he was handed a two-month prison term.
Is Elson Tumwine the first TikTok convict in Uganda?
Tumwine is the sixth Ugandan TikTok user to be convicted under similar charges involving offensive communication against Museveni, his family, or other senior government officials.
He was charged under Uganda’s Computer Misuse Act, which has been widely criticised by civil society groups for stifling free expression.
Sources close to the matter claimed Tumwine was advised by his captors to plead guilty to be released sooner.
Why was Kakan Maiyo arrested?
Elsewhere, a Nairobi-based businessman and popular TikTok commentator, Kakan Maiyo, was arrested by officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over a viral video allegedly inciting violence against police officers and their families.
The video, which was uploaded to his TikTok account, prompted swift action from authorities.
Detectives tracked Maiyo to his discreet office located at Kimathi House, where he was operating under the name LetaPeleka Logistics.
Proofreading by Mercy Nyambura, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
