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Written by: David Cassels

Rapper and reggae singer Bobi Wine has claimed victory in the Jan. 14 election, despite currently losing in the vote count to incumbent Yoweri Museveni.

Wine named himself the President-elect Friday afternoon after calling the official election results a “joke” and “daylight robbery.”

The official count currently has Wine trailing Museveni in the polls 28 to 63 per cent.

Wine took to twitter Friday evening and claimed that military people had “jumped over the fence” of his house and have now “taken control of our home.” Wine said, “None of these intruders are talking to us. We are in serious trouble. We are under siege.”

Meanwhile, President Yoweri Museveni is hoping to be reelected for his sixth term as Uganda’s president in what has been the most deadly election cycle the country has seen in decades.

Here is what is important to know about this election.

Museveni’s Competition: Bobi Wine

Read more about Bobi Wine here

Museveni’s main opponent is rapper and reggae singer Bobi Wine. Wine has run a historic campaign which has utilized social media effectively. He is most popular with Uganda’s youth and young adult population.

Wine was arrested in November for breaking Uganda’s COVID-19 regulations. 54 people were killed in the protests that followed before Wine was released from jail.

Wine’s platform includes, government corruption reform, increased public education funding, increased healthcare funding and equal representation of men and women in government.

Internet Blackouts

According to an executive at MTN Uganda, the country’s largest telecommunication company, the Uganda Communications Commission directed all internet providers to suspend services until after the election.

This comes after Museveni announced on Tuesday that social media and messaging apps had been shut down in preparation of the election.

Many in the international community have condemned the social media blackout.

Tibor Nagy, the Assistant Secretary for U.S. Department of State's Bureau of African Affairs, voiced his concerns about the social media shutdown and said, “Such restrictions undermine human rights and fundamental freedoms”.

Clément Voule, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Rights to Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association, called the news “worrying” and expressed that access to information is vital to fair elections.

The last time social media was banned in Uganda was back in 2016; also during a presidential election. In 2016 social media was banned only on election day and a complete internet blackout never occurred.

No U.S. or EU Observers

Natalie Brown, the U.S. Ambassador to Uganda, announced the cancelation of planned election observation in a statement published January 13, 2021.

In the statement, Brown said that the Electoral Commission of Uganda had denied U.S. accreditation requirements. She added, “the Electoral Commission provided no explanation for its decision, which it communicated mere days before the elections.”

This news is compounded by the fact that the EU Election Observers Mission was also cancelled back in Nov. after the Ugandan government failed to follow through with election recommendations made in 2016.

Canada’s Response

The Canadian government’s last statement on the Ugandan election was on Jan. 8, 2021, when the Media Freedom Coalition “expressed their concern” regarding press restrictions. This came about a month after three CBC journalists were deported from Uganda despite having official press accreditation.

The Canadian travel advisory warns of potential violence that could arise during the election. They advise that Canadians living in or visiting Uganda stay away from large crowds and demonstrations. They also advise that Canadians “monitor the media for information on ongoing demonstrations.”

As of January 13, 2021, the Government of Canada has not put out any official statement regarding the internet and social media blackout in Uganda.

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