Bobi Wine has clear rattled the NRM, which has ruled for the past three decades. And this is why it responded with such force last week.
It all started as both Bobi Wine and Museveni campaigned in the northern town of Arua ahead of a by-election. Protesters reportedly threw stones at the president’s convoy, leading to clashes with security forces. Later that day, Bobi Wine tweeted a photo of his driver, slumped dead and bleeding in his car, claiming that he had been the real target.
Police has shot my driver dead thinking they’ve shot at me. My hotel is now coddoned off by police and SFC. #Arua pic.twitter.com/fw0GeV0vU9
— BOBI WINE (@HEBobiwine) August 13, 2018
The next day, the police arrested Bobi Wine along with 32 others. Two days later, the MP was charged in a military court – despite being a civilian – with unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition.
Since then, reports emerged that Bobi Wine was badly beaten and tortured. “He is in great pain,” said one of his lawyers. “He can’t talk, he can’t walk, he sits with a lot of difficulty, his face is swollen and he cannot see.” Museveni dismissed these claims as “fake news”.
Despite the government’s version of events, it is clear that this state violence is less about guaranteeing presidential security than containing a new and growing threat. Yet the irony is that by detaining Bobi Wine, the NRM has stimulated an even bigger following.
Since his arrest, social media in Uganda and the broader region has erupted with messages of sympathy for the singer. #FreeBobiWine is trending. Uganda’s fractured and disorganised opposition has found a rallying call around which to unite. A fledgling movement has been injected with renewed vigour in resisting state repression. In various towns, there have also been protests and riots against Bobi Wine’s arrest as supporters demand his release.
Though things remain uncertain, the Ugandan state cannot hold Bobi Wine forever. If he is convicted on charges widely accepted to be trumped up, wells of anger and frustration that have built up over decades could spill onto the streets. But even if he is released with charges dropped, he will leave the prison gates to even bigger crowds than he left behind.