Ugandans cast their votes on 14 January in the East African country’s general election, but it’s unlikely anything will change. President Yoweri Museveni (76), has been in power for 34 years, longer than many Ugandans have been alive – and election fraud is expected to keep things that way. But the largely young population is increasingly gatvol of the dictator, which is why one of the opposition candidates, popularly known as Bobi Wine, is probably making Museveni quite nervous. A popular musician, actor and politician who is half Museveni’s age, Wine (real name Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu) has been repeatedly arrested by state forces and allegedly tortured. Pre-election violence in November saw over 50 people killed. Museveni may have stabilised the region back in the day and lifted many out of poverty but he’s lost the plot. It’s not clear how much longer the geriatric can keep suppressing the will of his young nation.

This brief was originally published in The Wrap here.

Sarah Evans
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