Uganda's opposition leader Bobi Wine remains in hiding nearly three weeks after fleeing his home amidst allegations of a night raid by police and military, leaving behind his family. The 43-year-old politician, who was the main challenger to President Yoweri Museveni in the disputed election, has been engaging in a high-stakes social media feud with the country's military chief, Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
The dispute began after Wine alleged mass fraud during the voting and called on supporters to protest. Since then, Wine has been posting text and videos on social media rejecting the election results and taunting Kainerugaba for failing to find him. In a recent post, he wrote: "I advise the regime to stop looking for me – I will resurface at an appropriate time. The best they would do is to peacefully relinquish power and let the people of Uganda decide their own destiny."
Kainerugaba has responded by declaring that Wine is wanted "dead or alive" and threatening to castrate or even kill him. He also denied that soldiers had assaulted Wine's wife during a raid on her house, which he claimed was staged for propaganda purposes.
The situation has escalated, with Kainerugaba accusing officials of the US embassy in Kampala of helping Wine go into hiding. However, after apologizing for being fed with wrong information, he later denied any pursuit by the military and accused the UPDF of being busy with other matters.
Noting the case of a reported assault on one of Wine's bodyguards last year, political analyst Timothy Kalyegira said Kainerugaba's statements should be taken seriously because they "translate some of these threats into reality." Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer for Wine, has called on international bodies to treat the threats "with the utmost seriousness" and demand guarantees for Wine's safety.
Wine's disappearance has raised concerns about his well-being, with many observers worried that he could face harm from Kainerugaba or other government officials. The situation remains tense, with both sides engaging in a public battle of words on social media.
The dispute began after Wine alleged mass fraud during the voting and called on supporters to protest. Since then, Wine has been posting text and videos on social media rejecting the election results and taunting Kainerugaba for failing to find him. In a recent post, he wrote: "I advise the regime to stop looking for me – I will resurface at an appropriate time. The best they would do is to peacefully relinquish power and let the people of Uganda decide their own destiny."
Kainerugaba has responded by declaring that Wine is wanted "dead or alive" and threatening to castrate or even kill him. He also denied that soldiers had assaulted Wine's wife during a raid on her house, which he claimed was staged for propaganda purposes.
The situation has escalated, with Kainerugaba accusing officials of the US embassy in Kampala of helping Wine go into hiding. However, after apologizing for being fed with wrong information, he later denied any pursuit by the military and accused the UPDF of being busy with other matters.
Noting the case of a reported assault on one of Wine's bodyguards last year, political analyst Timothy Kalyegira said Kainerugaba's statements should be taken seriously because they "translate some of these threats into reality." Robert Amsterdam, a lawyer for Wine, has called on international bodies to treat the threats "with the utmost seriousness" and demand guarantees for Wine's safety.
Wine's disappearance has raised concerns about his well-being, with many observers worried that he could face harm from Kainerugaba or other government officials. The situation remains tense, with both sides engaging in a public battle of words on social media.
u gotta wonder what kind of ppl r running the country there... like, how old is this guy who's threatening 2 kill someone just b/c they're dissin him online? 
Muhoozi Kainerugaba sounds like a total drama queen rn, and i'm low-key impressed that Bobi Wine isn't even hiding properly lol. The guy's like "I'll resurface when the time is right" while Kainerugaba's all "castrate him dead or alive". It's just so over-the-top 
. Can we pls just get to the bottom of this and make sure that Wine is safe? His life is literally on hold rn, and it's not fair 
. We need 2 see some actual action from the authorities here, not just these threats & accusations back & forth 
.
ugh, kainerugaba needs to chill out already 
wine's just trying to express himself and the gov't is being super aggressive about it 
and yeah, wine's got some valid points about the election results too, but still... this whole thing is just getting too intense 
gotta hope wine stays safe and doesn't get hurt 
this is getting outta hand! Like seriously, what kind of threats are we talking about here? "Dead or alive" and castrating him? Are they even joking?! And now he's saying Wine's wife was staged for propaganda? That's just low. The US embassy should be all over this, like what were they thinking to believe Kainerugaba in the first place?! 
. When will this dude resurface? And how can we even ensure his safety if he goes back out there? This is crazy! 
. He's hiding out and the military is like super aggressive towards him 
. Muhoozi Kainerugaba's threats are crazy - dead or alive? 
It feels like this is getting out of hand and someone could really get hurt 
. I hope they listen to those international lawyers and make sure Wine is safe 
. This whole situation is so tense and I'm not looking forward to what happens next... 
. I mean, Kainerugaba's statements are literally "dead or alive" so we can't just ignore those threats 
. And can we please talk about the fact that he denied the assault on Wine's wife was staged for propaganda purposes? Like, come on 
. And what's with all these international calls for Wine's safety? Like, we get it, he's in danger 
I mean come on Muhoozi Kainerugaba declaring him "dead or alive" is so not cool 
and castrating him is like something out of a horror movie 
but seriously how far are they gonna take this? And what about the US embassy getting caught up in all this 
and honestly I'm not sure how much longer he can keep going without getting hurt 
but its not good either if wine thinks hes being hunted by the military idk how much longer can this go on 
maybe international bodies should like step in and help with security guarantees 
, and I'm low-key terrified for Bobi Wine's life 
. It's time for some serious accountability and peace in Uganda 
#JusticeForBobiWine #Uganda #PeacePlease
this is getting super scary for bobi wine and his fam 
if kainerugaba's threats are taken seriously it could be a total disaster 
i hope wine and his team are safe and that someone is keeping an eye out for him 
international bodies should definitely be paying attention to this situation and doing something about it 
meanwhile, its up to international observers to keep an eye out for wine's safety