The 80-year-old leader pledges to economic growth from today’s GDP of between $660 billion and $500 million within the next five years.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni confirmed he will challenge next year’s presidential election and set the stage for a potential extension of his nearly 40-year rules.
The 80-year-old announced on Saturday that he expressed interest in his “presidential flag bearer’s position” against the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party.
Museveni took power in 1986 after a five-year civil war and has ruled ever since.
The NRM changed the constitution twice to remove the duration and age restrictions and clean up the way Museveni could extend his tenure.
Rights groups accused him of using security forces and using state sponsorship to suppress opposition and entrench his power.
Museveni said he is seeking re-election to transform Uganda into a “$500 million economy over the next five years.” Government data shows the country’s current gross domestic product is just under $660 billion.
The Ugandans are scheduled to choose the president and lawmakers of the parliament in January.
Challenger
Opposition leader Bobi Wine, a pop star-turned politician whose real name has been confirmed to be Robert Kyagulany again. Wine rejected the 2021 outcome and alleged widespread fraud, alteration of votes and blackmail by security forces.
Tensions have risen in recent months after Congress passed a law allowing military courts to test civilians.
The government argued that change was needed to tackle the threat to national security, but the figures from rights groups and opposition argued that it was a tool to intimidate and silence critics.
For years, Uganda has used military courts to indict opposition politicians and government critics.
In 2018, Wine was charged in military court with illegal possession of a firearm. The fee was later removed.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) criticizes Uganda’s military courts for failing to meet international standards of judicial independence and equity.
Oliem Neekko, a senior researcher in Africa at HRW, said this year that “Ugandan authorities have misused military courts for many years to crack down on their enemies and critics.”
