Uganda military clear streets after voter protest

Military police in Uganda’s capital Kampala cleared roads blocked by voters claiming ballot boxes had been stuffed, having braved long queues on Thursday (February 18) to vote in the presidential election.

Voting in most polling stations closed at 1600 local time (1300 GMT) but in some areas it was extended to 1900 local time (1600 GMT) due to delays. A handful of polling stations will re-open on Friday (February 19), according to the electoral commission.

Police and soldiers in riot gear patrolled the streets of the capital, but voting was largely peaceful despite the delays.

The poll pits President Yoweri Museveni, in power for three decades, against long-time rival Kizza Besigye who said he did not believe the vote would be “free and fair”.

Museveni, 71, came to power in 1986 after waging a five-year guerrilla war and many Ugandans credit him with providing relative peace and economic stability.

Museveni is widely expected to win, although in urban areas young voters turned out against him, demanding change and blaming the veteran former guerrilla for not tackling endemic corruption or creating jobs.

Bukenya Majidu, a protester, said electoral commission officials came back with stuffed ballot boxes, saying the contents were marked ballot papers for local Members of Parliament.

His polling station was among many in Kampala which opened hours after the official opening of polling at 0700 local time (0400 GMT), worrying many voters.

“They came back here at around half past 1 pm. They came here with a box full of ballot papers but the box was open and the ballot papers which was inside they were for only MPs, there’s no for presidents. Then the people started to shout, ‘where is the ballot papers for president, where is the ballot papers for president?’ now in the angry way the people grabbed the box and they start tearing all the ballot papers of the what, the MPs,” Majidu said.

Majidu and other protesters tore the ballot papers and left the polling station which was already deserted to go and block the roads.

Museveni’s other major challenger, former prime minister Amama Mbabazi, was a close ally of the president until a power struggle last year. He is also campaigning on promises of reform.