Ugandan opposition leader and former pop star Bobi Wine (real name Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu) has told the BBC that he fled the country after January's disputed election because he feared for his life. Speaking from an undisclosed location after two months in hiding, he stated: "It was clear that the regime wanted to eliminate me."

Wine announced his escape in a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), reiterating his claim that the election was rigged in favor of President Yoweri Museveni, who has been in power since 1986. The 81-year-old Museveni won with 72% of the vote and accused the opposition of seeking to overturn the results through violence.

The 44-year-old Wine told the BBC that during his two months in hiding, he was sheltered by supporters who provided food and clothing. He alleged that Museveni had tried "many times" to have him killed and that the president's son, Uganda's military chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, had made threats "without any filters." Kainerugaba said Wine was "wanted dead or alive" without citing specific offences and threatened castration; these posts were later deleted from his X account.

Meanwhile, some government members denied that security forces were searching for him. In the interview, Wine expressed fears that even outside Uganda, he is not safe, as he is "being pursued by a regime... that is able to pursue its political enemies wherever they are." He declined to give details of his departure to avoid endangering those who assisted him.

Wine noted that his family had left earlier, but he voiced concerns for members of his National Unity Platform party remaining in Uganda, including his deputy Lina Zedriga, whom he named as temporary successor. He characterized his departure as brief and expressed a desire to return. Wine also called for targeted international sanctions against Museveni, alleging that authorities have raided supporters' homes and set up roadblocks nationwide.

Source: www.bbc.com