Yoweri Museveni faces Bobi Wine in presidential polls

Voting in Uganda’s presidential and parliamentary elections has been delayed due to logistical issues in many parts of Uganda amid internet blackouts.

The BBC has seen growing discontent among voters queuing at some polling stations in the capital Kampala, where voting has yet to begin in the general election.

The delays were due to failures in biometric kits, some related to network outages and some due to equipment shortages in some areas.

The election agency apologized for the “technical glitch” and said officials were working to resolve it.

Yoweri Museveni (81), who has been in power since 1986, is aiming for his seventh consecutive victory in the presidential primary against the challenge of charismatic 43-year-old pop star Bobi Wine.

Where voting takes place, there are reports that biometric machines used to verify voters’ identities are still malfunctioning in some areas.

Voting materials and equipment did not arrive at some stations on time, causing delays.

“I’m angry because I haven’t voted yet. It was supposed to start at 7 and it hasn’t started yet. The ballot isn’t there and I don’t even know what to say.” Kawisi Ismail, a Kampala voter, told the BBC.

Museveni said he also faced difficulties while voting in Rwakitura village, in the western Mbarara region where he was born.

“I put my fingerprint in the machine and it wasn’t recognized, but my face was recognized immediately by the machine. The machine worked,” he said.

Asked whether he would accept the election results, the president said: “This is one of rigging. We have to figure out why and what’s wrong.”

He added, “We are checking whether it was intentional.”

Electoral Commissioner Simon Byabakama has ordered the National Voter Register to be used if biometric machines are not working.

“It is the primary duty of the Election Commission to ensure that no citizen is disenfranchised due to machine failure,” he said.

The issue appears to affect both regions seen as pro-government and those seen as anti-government.

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National law allows voting hours to be extended if problems disrupt the voting process.

“Polling stations will remain open until 4pm (13:00 GMT) until all registered voters in the queue have cast their votes,” Byabakama said.

The presidential polls are essentially a two-way race between Museveni and Wine, but given the president’s victories in the past six elections, analysts say he is likely to extend his stay in power even further.

While Wine has promised to root out corruption and implement sweeping reforms, Museveni insists he is the only one who can guarantee stability and development for the country.

The election commission announced that the results of the presidential election will be announced by 16:00 (GMT) on Saturday local time.

The campaign period was marred by a hiatus in opposition activity. Security forces have been accused of attacking and detaining Wine’s supporters.

Police spokesman Kituuma Rusoke dismissed the complaints, accusing opposition supporters, especially those belonging to Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) party, of being disruptive.

As internet access was disrupted ahead of voting day, Uganda’s Communications Commission said the outage was necessary to prevent misinformation, fraud and incitement to violence. It is a move that the United Nations human rights office has condemned as “serious concerns”.

NUP rejected this explanation, accusing regulators of trying to prevent the opposition from mobilizing and sharing evidence of election fraud. The party launched an offline voting monitoring app in preparation for power outages.

The app, called Bitchat, uses Bluetooth technology to share results form images and voting data from polling places without internet access, according to Wine.

Museveni, a former leader of a guerrilla army, benefited from two constitutional changes that removed age and term limits, allowing him to continue running for office.

Wine (real name Robert Kyagulanyi) lost the 2021 election to the president. He won 35% of the vote compared to Museveni’s 59%, according to the electoral commission, but Wine dismissed the results as allegations of fraud.

Besides Museveni and Wine, six other presidential candidates are on the ballot this year.

Voters will also choose a new 353-seat parliament.

For many people voting Thursday, the economy is a key issue.

The majority of the population is under the age of 30, and average income is steadily increasing, but there are not enough jobs to accommodate all the young people looking for work.

There are also concerns about poor infrastructure and gaps in access to quality education and health services.

During the campaign, opposition supporters faced increasingly severe harassment, including politically motivated arrests, according to the United Nations and Amnesty International.

Unlike Museveni’s rally, Wine’s rally was disrupted by security forces.

Amnesty described the use of tear gas, pepper spray, beatings and other acts of violence ahead of the vote as a “cruel campaign of repression”.

Additionally, the head of Uganda’s electoral body said he had received threats warning the BBC not to publish certain results.

The 2021 election was also marked by violence. A BBC investigation found that dozens of people have died as a result of the protests and that security forces are responsible for at least some of these deaths.

Security has been tightened in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, since Saturday.

Officers are conducting large marches and patrols, and armored vehicles have been deployed throughout the area.

Some Kampala residents traveled to rural areas during elections, believing they were safer there.

“I decided to re-register my polling station in my hometown because elections in Uganda are often violent,” one man told the BBC. He wished to remain anonymous.

“I’m glad I made that decision, because as you can see now there is a heavy and intimidating security presence in the city. So I’m still going to vote in my town, but I’m also avoiding the fear of that security.”

Additional reporting by Wedaeli Chibelushi