Security blocks Bobi Wine in Butyende

Buyende, Uganda: The Opposition National Unity Platform (NUP)’s Presidential candidate, Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, was blocked by security on Tuesday from accessing Bukungu Landing site, where two ferries remain uncommissioned and a long-awaited ice plant has been vandalized.

Security personnel deployed heavy armoured vehicles, denying the candidate entry and forcing a diversion to Bukungu Primary School, where he addressed a large crowd.

Kyagulanyi told residents that the blockade exposed the regime’s neglect and exploitation, emphasizing that the campaign represents a struggle for regime change. “These people do not want us to see and expose the rot in the regime, the neglect, exploitation, and the extent of suffering they have exposed you to in your own land,” he said, adding, ” Our call for regime change is real, and the only shelter from the harsh sunshine and rain is the umbrella.”

During rallies at Kidera Town in Budiope West and Irundu Town in Budiope East, Kyagulanyi promised Budiope and Kamuli residents access to clean water, support for irrigation-based farming, and free fishing gear for local communities.

He also highlighted education reforms, targeting school feeding programs and teachers’ disparities as key priorities for his proposed government.

Kyagulanyi further assured residents that his administration would fulfill longstanding promises that have been used as mere campaign tools, including electricity, tarmacked roads, resettlements, and above all, guaranteed freedom.

In Kamuli, security was heavily deployed following rumours that Kyagulanyi would stay at Senga wa Bobi’s Century Hotel.

Despite the restrictions, residents filled the streets and the roundabout, hoping to see the NUP President. He was eventually escorted from the Namwendwa rally at full speed, unable to stop or interact further with the public.

Security agencies deployed teargas trucks to seal off the route, a move Kyagulanyi said was designed to prevent Ugandans from witnessing the scale of his support.

“They don’t want the world to see our popular support, or the harsh living conditions of the people at the landing site,” he told crowds who had gathered along the backroads.

The diversion made the journey long and difficult, with the convoy winding through deep, dusty village roads.

Yet residents turned out in large numbers to welcome him, cheering and waving as he passed, in what NUP officials said was a show of resilience that underscored his enduring grassroots appeal despite state restrictions.

Kyagulanyi accused the authorities of mistreating citizens and covering up land grabbing.

“Our people’s property has been destroyed. But injustice will be defeated. We shall build a new Uganda, a Uganda of freedom and equality, without sectarianism. Uganda is not for one family; Uganda is for all of us,” he declared.