Uganda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Adonia Ayebare, has rejected attempts by the opposition to use the European Parliament as a platform to address concerns over the country’s recent general elections, saying Kampala does not consider the EU Parliament “a relevant institution” for foreign policy engagement.
Speaking on NBS Morning Breeze, Ayebare said Uganda had been invited to address the European Parliament but “we turned the invitation down. We don’t believe that’s the right channel to address foreign policy.”
He added that “anyone can address the European Parliament,” but stressed that the government chose not to participate because it sees the institution as irrelevant on matters of foreign policy.
Ayebare also took aim at the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), saying critics were leveraging the issue for visibility.
“I understand NUP; they will hang on to anything that gives them visibility,” he said, but emphasised that the EU Parliament is not the institution through which Uganda handles its international relations.
He stressed Uganda deals with the European Commission on bilateral relations and foreign policy, noting that Kampala and Brussels mark 50 years of cooperation this month and remain engaged on issues relating to the recent elections.
“Uganda is dealing with the EU Commission. They released what we believe is a measured statement on our elections and we are engaging them on the flaws they identified,” Ayebare said.
On the role of critics like NUP leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, Ayebare said the people addressed by Kyagulanyi “know more about this country than he does. They know the facts; that’s why they keep engaging us.”
He also said Kyagulanyi “didn’t address summits, he addressed small meetings of NGOs.”
On sovereignty, Ayebare argued that as a sovereign state, Uganda can make mistakes and correct them.
“Is Uganda a sovereign country? Sovereignty means you can make mistakes but these mistakes can be corrected,” he said, adding that the EU has its own internal issues without external interference.
In response to calls from the EU Parliament to scrutinise Uganda’s elections where the European body condemned widespread intimidation and irregularities, Kampala has insisted internal mechanisms are the appropriate venue for addressing such concerns.
The EU Parliament’s resolution, adopted earlier in February 2026, strongly criticised the conduct of the elections and urged reforms.
Ayebare reiterated that while Uganda values its partnership with the EU, it considers the parliament’s critique politically irrelevant. “The EU are not donors, they are partners… we receive support from the EU, not donations,” he said.