Africa seems to have been wrapped in a sombre mood with shattered hopes as the long-time leader, Yoweri Museveni, is declared the winner of the highly anticipated elections in Uganda.

According to Uganda’s electoral commission report, the incumbent Museveni secured 5.85 million of the total votes, while the main opposition candidate Bobi Wine won 3.48 million votes.

The 38-year-old pop star turned opposition leader rejected the results since the announcement of the preliminary results as they came in on Friday, accusing the electoral commission of election rigging. However, the commission dismissed the allegations made by the former pop star.

Speaking to Aljazeera after the announcement on Saturday, Benjamin Kantana depicted the elections as “an attempt to undermine the will of the people of Uganda”.

He added that

“The legal framework of Uganda gives us a number of opportunities and options to which we can contest this unfair process and going through the supreme court is one of the options. We ask the people of Uganda to stand firm and work with us to explore all the options to make sure that we stop this coup.”

Pre-election violence dominated headlines in the East-African country, leaving dozens dead,while politicians accused of the government for harassment.

ELECTIONS IN AFRICA:HISTORY REPEATED ITSELF IN UGANDA

Days prior to the presidential elections, the internet was shutdown allowing no access to communication via internet. Robert Kyagulanyi who goes by the stage name Bobi Wine, accused the government of making the move to rig the elections.

In a sign of further repression , Bobi Wine was under heavy guard in his home in Kampala since the announcement of the preliminary results on Friday.
He even tweeted on Friday saying:

“None of these military intruders is talking to us, we are in a serious trouble.”

On the contrary, the Ugandan government spokesman accused him of “dramatizing the incident to seek for sympathy.”

Don Wanyama told the BBC that

“Bobi Wine at the moment is a very important person. It is the duty of the state of Uganda to ensure he is secure.”

All this sounds eerily familiar with stories in Guinea Conakry and Ivory Coast during their respective presidential elections. The outcome is invariably horrible and of course heartbreaking for many Africans, especially the younger generation who have longed for change for so many years.

BOBI WINE – “THE GHETTO PRESIDENT”

Believed to be the strongest of the 10 opposition candidates in Uganda, Bobi wine spent the last two decades addressing social issues and the lack of basic needs in Uganda through his music. Despite being arrested on several occasions, the former musician never showed signs of giving up on his fight for the Ugandan people, especially the young generation.
He campaigned for improving access to healthcare, clean water and justice with the help of his party, the National Unity Platform.

YOWERI MUSEVENI: “FROM REFORMER TO AUTOCRAT”

The DW news agency termed the long serving president of Uganda “from a reformer to autocrat”.
Museveni was seen as a harbinger of peace in Uganda. He came to power in 1986, ending the bloody civil wars in his country and has been in power for 35 years.
Despite early recognition as freedom fighter, Ugandan citizens have been showing discontent with lack of employment and other basic necessities which includes press freedom.
Now that he has won another five years, what is the faith of Bobi Wine and Ugandan people who longed for change for so many years?