‘I Cried When They Gave Me Prison Uniform’ – Tems Recounts Jail Term In Uganda

Nigerian music sensation, Tems, shared her distressing experience during her incarceration in Uganda, following her arrest on December 12, 2020, alongside Omah Lay.

They were arrested for violating COVID-19 restrictions after a performance at the Big Brunch.

Tems, in an interview with Angie Martinez, described how she initially thought her arrest was a joke.

However, when she arrived at the prison and was handed a prison uniform, the seriousness of the situation hit her, and she cried. She spent two days in a cramped and unpleasant prison, uncertain of her release.

The 28-year-old singer highlighted the unjust imprisonment of women for minor offenses and the involvement of corrupt guards.

In the prison, inmates were unable to make phone calls without money, and Tems had no funds at her disposal during her ordeal.

In her words, “I thought I wasn’t gonna come out. I thought I was seeing it for a reason like maybe I was meant to help the people. I was settling in because I adapted real quick and as I was walking in I started to cry because they gave me my uniform and it stunk because they don’t wash it.”

“I thought I wasn’t gonna come out. I thought I was seeing it for a reason like maybe I was meant to help the people. I was settling in because I adapted real quick and as I was walking in I started to cry because they gave me my uniform and it stunk because they don’t wash it.”

“Once I walked in everyone turned and looked at me and whispering and I was like ‘what have I done? I can’t cry’ and I just started winking, that was my way of adapting. I must show these people that I’m confident so I started being extra winking and saying hi and they were laughing,” she added.