The video in the tiktok  is not what was shared by winnie Byanyima, Dr Kizza Besigye’s wife; it is AI-generated

6 February 2026, 10:03 am

Byamukama Alozious

The TikTok video claiming to show Dr Kizza Besigye seriously sick is misleading and AI-manipulated. A video circulating on TikTok from the account @musawo.aine claims to show Dr Kizza Besigye seriously ill in hospital. The post presents what appears to be a video, implying a recent or worsening medical emergency.

  Impact of the claim

The content spread widely on TikTok, generating public concern, speculation, and misinformation. 

The post attracted over 24,000 likes, 1,200 replies, 167 reposts, and more than 1,000 shares, with captions such as “Finally Besigye was taken to hospital”, which heightened public anxiety.

 We examined whether the circulating content is a genuine video and the origin and context of           the image used.

 The Facts

It is true that Dr Kiiza Besigye is sick. In a news story run on NTV Television, Winnie Byanyima, Dr Besigye’s wife, confirmed that he is indeed sick and needs medical care. Although she said Besigye had been taken to a clinic, outside her knowledge. In the same video, The prisons spokesperson Frank Baine dismissed the allegations that Besigye is not critically ill 

Not a real video: Our verification using infoverifier found that the TikTok content is not an authentic video. It is a still photograph that has been digitally animated (using AI or video effects) to appear like a moving video.

The original photograph was taken by Winnie Byanyima herself while Dr Besigye was in a   hospital in Bugolobi. (source: Danny News)

This is the original picture showing Dr Besigye in a clinic, which the wife shared, but not a video as shown in the claims 

Verdict: 

Misleading: Although the image of Dr Besigye in hospital attire is authentic and has been published before, and the caption that he is finally taken to the hospital represents real developments, the presentation of him in an extremely dire health state is a rage bait created with artificial intelligence and separates the original photograph and its context.

This fact-check was produced by MaMa FM with support from the Debunk Media Initiative and BBC Media Action.