STATEMENT
— BOBI WINE (@HEBobiwine) January 17, 2026
Last night was very difficult at our home in Magere. The military and police raided us. They switched off power and cut off some of our CCTV cameras. There were helicopters hovering over.
I want to confirm that I managed to escape from them. Currently, I am not at… pic.twitter.com/P1sKic3kCL
Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine said on Saturday that he had escaped what he described as a police and military raid on his home and was now in hiding as the country awaited the outcome of a tightly controlled election held under an internet blackout.
President Yoweri Museveni, 81, was poised to extend his nearly four-decade rule, with electoral officials saying he held a commanding lead over Wine, 43, as final results were expected later in the day.
Conflicting reports had emerged about Wine’s whereabouts after security forces allegedly raided his residence on Friday night, prompting heightened tension in the capital, Kampala, where police were seen forcing people off the streets to prevent possible protests.
“I want to confirm that I managed to escape from them,” Wine wrote on X, adding, “Currently, I am not at home, although my wife and other family members remain under house arrest,” and warning that security forces were searching for him. Police said they had merely restricted access to what they termed security hotspots, insisting they could not allow gatherings that might “incite violence.”
With more than 90 percent of votes counted, the Electoral Commission said Museveni was leading with 71.9 percent to Wine’s 24.5 percent, even as Wine accused the government of “massive ballot stuffing” and violence against his supporters during the internet shutdown.
While African election observers said they saw no evidence of ballot-stuffing, they condemned reports of intimidation, arrests and abductions targeting the opposition, which they said had “instilled fear and eroded public trust in the electoral process.”