Uganda’s post-election tensions deepened this week after the country’s army chief publicly threatened opposition leader Bobi Wine, as authorities intensified a crackdown on dissent following President Yoweri Museveni’s disputed re-election.
General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the outspoken son of Museveni and head of Uganda’s armed forces, said on social media that he wanted Wine dead, days after the opposition leader said he had been forced into hiding following a security raid on his home.
Kainerugaba’s remarks came after Museveni, 81, was declared the winner of last week’s presidential election with 71.6% of the vote, securing an eighth term in office.
Opposition challenger Bobi Wine, a 43-year-old pop star-turned-politician whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, finished second with 24%, according to official results that have been widely criticised by election observers and rights groups.
“We have killed 22 NUP terrorists since last week. I’m praying the 23rd is Kabobi,” Kainerugaba wrote late Monday on X, using a derogatory nickname for Wine and referring to his National Unity Platform party. In a separate post, he gave Wine “48 hours to surrender” to police, threatening to treat him as an outlaw if he failed to do so.
Wine condemned what he described as direct death threats, saying security forces had surrounded his compound and left his family in danger. His wife remains under apparent house arrest, while his own whereabouts remain unknown after he said he narrowly escaped a military raid on Saturday.
In a televised message aired on Monday night on NTV Uganda, Wine accused the police of vandalizing his home and said that leaving the premises had allowed him “to speak to the world,” although he did not disclose his location.
Kainerugaba, known for his incendiary late-night posts, escalated his rhetoric further by calling himself “a prophet of Almighty God” and hurling dehumanising insults at Wine.
The army chief has a history of provocative online statements and last year openly threatened to behead the opposition leader.
The renewed threats followed an unusually quiet period from Kainerugaba during the campaign, but he returned to social media soon after his father’s victory, posting frequently and aggressively.
Meanwhile, the crackdown on the opposition has widened. At least 118 members of the National Unity Platform were charged in Kampala courts on Monday with offences including unlawful assembly, conspiracy and possession of election materials, according to court records and party officials.
NUP secretary-general David Rubongoya denied accusations that the party’s supporters were involved in violence, saying many of those arrested were accredited polling agents.
“They even had letters confirming that they were polling agents of NUP. They were targeted and arrested violently,” he told local broadcaster NTV Uganda.
Scattered protests broke out in parts of the capital on Saturday after election officials announced Museveni’s victory, but police swiftly dispersed crowds using teargas and detentions.
Ahead of the vote, the United Nations Human Rights Office accused Uganda’s military and police of using live ammunition against peaceful rallies, carrying out arbitrary arrests and abducting opposition supporters.
Museveni, in power since 1986, is Africa’s third-longest-serving head of state.
His latest victory means he could rule Uganda for nearly half a century by the time his new term ends in 2031.
Wine and his party have rejected the election results, alleging ballot stuffing, intimidation, enforced disappearances of polling agents and widespread repression.
