Uganda
Uganda's opposition supporters nervously await next move
With their leader under house arrest, and soldiers still out in force, backers of presidential runner-up Bobi Wine have been waiting and watching in nervous...
Long-term leader Yoweri Musveni was declared the winner of a January 14 presidential election, securing 58.6% of the vote and a sixth term after 35 years in power.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has won a sixth term in office with 58.6 percent of the vote, in an election disputed by his main rival Bobi Wine.
Uganda's election commission announced that with 86.7% of polling stations reporting results, Museveni had 58.8% of votes, while Bobi Wine had 34.2%.
The internet remained down for a third day as vote counting continued, with provisional results from 29% of polling stations giving Museveni an early lead of 63% while Wine trailed with 28%.
Voting in Kampala took place under the oppressive security presence of soldiers and riot police in the streets and at polling stations.
EFF leader Julius Malema offered some words of encouragement to Bobi Wine who is vying to be Uganda’s next president. Wine is going up against Yoweri Museveni, who has been president of Uganda since 1986. Malema was speaking at a press briefing on 14 January 2021
The internet went down on the eve of the vote, with some parts of the country reporting complete disruptions or significant slowdowns, after one of the most violent campaigns in years.
The migration to social media has been driven by two key factors: it's youthful voting population and excitement for Bobi Wine.
Soldiers swarmed the streets of the capital and authorities blocked access to social media after one of the most violent election campaigns in years.
Uganda ordered a shutdown of social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp ahead of Thursday's vote.
Today the star, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, is an MP dressed in dark, tailored suits who is fighting to become president of Uganda in Thursday's election.
He claims the army arrested his security guards and rounded up everyone else found on his property.
Bobi Wine, the 38-year-old popularly known as the "ghetto president" who hung up the mike to enter politics, leads the opposition field trying to unseat Museveni, a 76-year-old former rebel leader who has ruled since 1986.
Journalists have been attacked, lawyers jailed, election monitors prosecuted and opposition leaders violently muzzled using coronavirus laws.
Bobi Wine's campaign team said the opposition leader and his entire support crew had been arrested in Kalangala, a district near Lake Victoria, while drumming up support for his bid to unseat veteran President Yoweri Museveni on 14 January.
Two days of protests were sparked by Bobi Wine's arrest on Wednesday ahead of a political rally in the run-up to the January 14 election, in which he is seen as the main challenger to President Yoweri Museveni.
Twenty-eight people died in violent clashes between Ugandan security forces and supporters of detained opposition leader Bobi Wine this week, police said Friday, updating an earlier toll.
Ugandan security forces fired teargas and rubber bullets at angry protesters who set fires, barricaded roads and looted stores in the capital Kampala, as calls mounted for calm ahead of the 14 January elections.