Uganda President Yoweri Museveni has blasted the UK and US governments for issuing travel advisories to its citizens ahead of the just concluded Nyege Nyege music festival.
The governments separately advised their citizens against visiting crowded places including the hugely attended Nyege Nyege festival, citing terror threats.
“There is a growing terror threat in Uganda, including the targeting of foreigners. Avoid large gatherings, including large-scale worship, and music and cultural festivals in Uganda,” the UK embassy said.
The US Mission in Kampala followed suit saying, “Due to security concerns, we advise US citizens not to attend the festival.”
It took Museveni's intervention to save the famous festival from collapse under the weight of the advisories by assuring the country that security forces would be on call to provide sufficient protection to the attendees of the festival held between November 9-11 in Jinja.
On Wednesday, the President lashed out at the UK and US terming them "mistake makers" for issuing unnecessary travel advisories to their citizens.
"Indeed, I hear that the panicking Americans and British sent out what they call advisories to their citizens not to come to Uganda. These are mistake makers. If the situation was so bad, it would be us to advise people not to come to Uganda, not the British and the Americans," he said.
Whilst acknowledging that the security threat was indeed alive, Museveni commended the country's security forces for providing sufficient security during the event.
"It is true ADF in Congo had sent a few infiltrators to try to disrupt the function. This shows you the strength of the Uganda security system to be able to guard such a long pre-announced massive public function, the threats of the terrorists notwithstanding," he said.
"Even if a mistake occurs, we know how to handle it. These advisories by some of these actors are another form of interference in our internal affairs by these elements."
Museveni issued the statement while airborne on his return from Abu Dhabi where he had gone to meet His Highness Nahyan, the President of the UAE.
The Nyege Nyege Festival is an annual four-day dance party featuring hundreds of deejays.
First staged in 2015, the highly publicised festival is popular amongst residents and foreigners alike with a sizeable number of eventgoers coming from abroad.
The annual festival has grown in popularity over the years amid moral concerns with last year's event, the first in three years after the Covid pandemic, almost failing to happen after Uganda’s parliament banned it citing the promotion of “sexual immorality.”
The venue of this year's event was moved to Jinja, some 80km from the shores of Lake Victoria where it usually happens for a venue that would accommodate larger crowds.