Don’t Even Try!! Museveni Warns Bobi Wine’s NUP On Election Riots

As Uganda moves steadily toward the 2026 general elections, President Yoweri Museveni has issued a stern warning to the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), cautioning its members against staging violent protests.

The president’s warning comes amid a fresh wave of arrests targeting NUP supporters across different parts of the country — particularly in Lira and Mbarara — where NUP presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, also known as Bobi Wine, has recently held campaign rallies that drew large crowds.

The arrests have rekindled public fears of possible unrest reminiscent of the November 18th and 19th, 2020 protests that rocked Uganda in the lead-up to the 2021 general elections.

While addressing the nation during his campaign trail in Mbale, in the Bugisu sub-region, Museveni did not mince words. “I must warn these ones who are misleading these children…. Like when they had those riots of 2020, I think it was November 18th; when they rioted that Kyagulanyi had been arrested, that they would riot and burn Kampala, then the army intervened and crashed them. Some of the children died. The ones who are doing that game here in Uganda will end up badly. We normally defeat it by counter action,” Museveni said.

The president’s remarks referred to the 2020 riots that erupted following Bobi Wine’s arrest in Luuka District, where he had been accused of violating COVID-19 restrictions by holding mass rallies. The arrest sparked violent demonstrations in several parts of the country, especially within Kampala and surrounding areas.

During those chaotic days, security forces responded with overwhelming force. Official figures indicated that at least 54 people were killed, while hundreds of others were injured or detained. However, NUP claimed that the true death toll exceeded 100. The heavy-handed response drew sharp criticism from human rights organizations, which described it as one of the darkest and most violent episodes in Uganda’s recent electoral history.

Observers and international rights groups later described the 2021 elections as the most violent in Uganda’s post-independence era, citing widespread intimidation, arrests, and restrictions on opposition activities.

With less than a year before Ugandans head back to the polls, political tensions appear to be simmering once again. The recent arrests of NUP supporters in Lira and Mbarara, coupled with Museveni’s renewed warning, have stirred anxiety about the possibility of another cycle of electoral violence.

In response to the president’s remarks, Bobi Wine accused Museveni of using fear to intimidate opposition supporters and suppress dissent. He has consistently argued that Uganda’s ruling establishment employs state machinery to silence political rivals ahead of elections.

As the political climate heats up, many Ugandans are watching closely to see whether the coming months will bring a repeat of the 2020 unrest or a more peaceful path toward the 2026 general elections.