(Bloomberg) -- A Ugandan court remanded veteran opposition leader Kizza Besigye in prison after he was arrested for protesting against rising commodity prices.
The court returned Besigye, 66, to prison on Wednesday after he refused to pay bail of 30 million shillings ($8,138), an amount that was “injudicious,” his lawyer Erias Lukwago said by phone from the capital, Kampala. Besigye plans to challenge to bail amount on Thursday, he said.
Besigye, who has run for president four times, was arrested Tuesday as he rallied people to protest against rising prices of basic goods including cooking oil and soap. Inflation in the East African country accelerated to 4.9% in April -- the highest rate in almost five years.
Uganda has been ruled by President Yoweri Museveni for 36 years. Besigye, a physician, served as Museveni’s personal doctor during a civil war in the country in the 1980s.
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