On July 7th, 2025, BBC News published a headline that read:

“Yoweri Museveni has been endorsed by the ruling party as its candidate in the 2026 election.”

Accompanied by a smiling image of Uganda’s 80-year-old ruler, the caption framed this moment as just another routine political development. But to millions of Ugandans especially the youth, this was not news. It was a slap in the face. It was a continuation of a 40-year nightmare disguised as democracy.

I commented under that post calmly but firmly exposing Museveni’s long record of repression, corruption, and illegitimacy. Within hours, my comment had been deleted. By the next morning, BBC News had blocked my account from interacting with their page. I had to access their page using a different account with my comment deleted.

No warning. No explanation. No appeal.

A British publicly-funded media house silenced a Ugandan citizen for exposing decades of abuse, in the comments section of their own post. Whom do they serve, what are they protecting??

What Did I Say That Deserved to Be Erased?

Here’s the truth that BBC did not want to remain under their post,

For nearly four decades, Yoweri Museveni has not ruled Uganda through democratic consent but through violence, constitutional manipulation, and military force. Since 1986, he has held onto power through rigged elections, brutal crackdowns, and legislative coups. He was not elected by the people in 1986, nor in 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016, or 2021.

In 2005, he bribed MPs to remove term limits a safeguard meant to prevent exactly this kind of life presidency. Then in 2017, when age threatened to disqualify him, he sent soldiers into Parliament to beat up lawmakers and remove the presidential age limit by force. These weren’t democratic reforms. They were constitutional rapes carried out at gunpoint.

Museveni didn’t come to power through the ballot. He came with bullets preaching against long-serving leaders only to become Africa’s longest-serving dictator.

Uganda Under Siege By Its Own Government

Uganda is not a democracy. It is a state under internal occupation. The police have become hunters. The army, a personal militia. Parliament, a circus of cowardice. Activists vanish into “torture houses.” Protesters are gunned down in the streets. In November 2020, more than 100 Ugandans were killed in cold blood simply for demanding the release of opposition leader Bobi Wine.

Today, youth unemployment is over 70%, hospitals are crumbling, and education is a luxury. Meanwhile, billions are siphoned through fake contracts, inflated military budgets, and ghost projects. Uganda’s national debt now exceeds 52% of GDP but the money doesn’t build; it maintains dictatorship.

Then the West’s Dirty Hands in Uganda’s Oppression

Museveni survives not on popular support, but on Western protection. Britain, the EU, and the United States continue to arm, finance, and legitimize his regime. To them, Museveni is a “stabilizer” in the Great Lakes region a useful gatekeeper in exchange for oil, gold, and mineral access. Their commitment to democracy ends at their borders.

Original Deleted comment

The same BBC that blocked me would never silence a Ukrainian, Palestinian, or Russian dissident for criticizing a regime. But they erased my voice a Black African fighting for justice in my own country. That is not journalism. That is complicity.

Why Was I Silenced for Speaking the Truth?

If my words were wrong, they could have been debated.

If my tone was aggressive, it could have been challenged.

But I was blocked and erased. That tells you everything.

Museveni fears the youth. He fears the truth. But now, so do his international enablers because the narrative is slipping.

Uganda’s young people are awake, informed, and angry. We are not afraid. Museveni is not a president he is a parasite, a relic clinging to power, feeding off a nation he has robbed for 40 years. He has overstayed, over-bled, and overruled Uganda. And we are ready to take it back.

To the BBC and the West You Can’t Silence Us All

If BBC wants to side with power instead of people, history will judge them. If they believe blocking one activist will stop the truth, they are mistaken. My voice echoes millions of others who are rising to say:

Enough is enough.

Uganda does not belong to Museveni.

It belongs to its people.

And we are coming for our future.

JB Muwonge

Social Activist | Human Rights Defender

📧 contact@jbmuwonge.com

🌍 www.jbmuwonge.com

Jimmy Spire Ssentongo asked a powerful question, and I would love to give him answers, He said,

To answer this, I have to start with what happened recently at the NBS Talk show, Barometer. The entire country was in high gear, waiting for him to speak. The moment he stepped in the Studios, the atmosphere changed. The presenters couldn’t hide their smiles, felt that rare spark of hope, rushed to capture the moment, posing for photos, hurriedly shaking his hand, and recording videos, chanting welcome songs it was such a lovely moment.

 We were glued to our TVs, phones, and laptops, desperate to catch every word. People in the streets gathered around screens, others turned their phones into TVs, streaming the show on Facebook Live and YouTube. Content creators, activists, and ordinary Ugandans, especially we the youth made sure his message spread far and wide. And what did the regime do? As usual, it panicked. It resorted to the shameful act of turning off electricity in some areas, fearing that too many people would hear the truth. But nothing could stop us. Even when the online streaming was sabotaged, we hurriedly found a way past that.

So, why does Bobi Wine command such love and devotion from us?

1. We Have Known Only One Ruler, and We Have Suffered Under Him.

I am one of millions of Ugandans under 35 who have never seen any other president. For my entire life, I have only known one man in power Museveni. I have only known corruption, broken systems, rigged elections, police brutality, tribalism, Unemployment and extreme poverty. I have only known a country where the cost of living keeps rising while job opportunities shrink. A country where our dreams are suffocated by poor governance. We have watched our leaders loot the country dry, while we, the youth, are told to be patient, to HUSTLE HARDER in a system designed to keep us down. We have grown up watching our leaders fly their children abroad for education and healthcare, while we struggle in underfunded schools and hospitals that barely function.

Bobi Wine speaks for us. He understands our pain because he comes from where we come from. He is not another detached politician with empty promises, a politician who grew up privileged, NO., he grew up in Kamwokya, a ghetto boy who fought his way up. He knows what it means to struggle, and that is why when he speaks, we listen.

2. We Have Lived Under a System That Kills Our Dreams

For years, we have been told that things will get better. But nothing ever does. Education does not guarantee a job. Hard work does not guarantee success. The only way to make it in Uganda is to be connected to the regime or to leave the country.

The system is designed to break us. It turns graduates into boda boda riders, engineers into street hawkers, and forces millions into exile. It silences those who speak out and rewards those who steal.

But Bobi Wine tells us that we deserve better. That we are not lazy, we are not stupid, and we are not worthless. That we have power, and we can take our country back.

3. He Represents the Courage We All Wish to Have.

Uganda is a country where speaking out can get you arrested, tortured, or killed. This is a country where opposition politicians are abducted in broad daylight, tortured, activists are jailed without trial, and voices of dissent are crushed with brute force. Yet, here is Bobi Wine fearless, standing up against the most brutal regime Uganda has ever seen. When they abduct his comrades, torture him, teargas him, and do all unspeakable things, he does not back down. That courage is contagious. It makes us believe that we, too, can resist.

4. His Message Is Simple, Direct, and Authentic

Unlike the traditional opposition who speak in vague, rehearsed statements, Bobi Wine does not speak in the cold, calculated language of career politicians, He doesn’t pretend, now way. His words resonate because they are raw, direct, and unfiltered. He does not complicate things with big words or empty rhetoric. He says it as it is. He does not claim to be a saint or a messiah, he presents himself as one of us, just another Ugandan who has had enough.

5. His Vision for Uganda Is Clear and Achievable

Beyond his personal charisma, what makes Bobi Wine even more loved is his vision for Uganda. Unlike Museveni’s regime, which thrives on confusion and lies, Bobi Wine has laid out a clear roadmap in his manifesto. He has addressed the issues that matter most education, healthcare, job creation, governance, and human rights.

His policies are not just words; they are practical solutions that can uplift the common Ugandan. He envisions a Uganda where hospitals are well equipped, where teachers and doctors are paid well, where police and army officers serve the people instead of oppressing them. He has a plan for reviving our economy, restoring democracy, and ensuring that every Ugandan, regardless of their background, has a fair chance at success. For the past four year he has been the president of NUP we have seen him do that with the little at his disposal, just for  his party.

That is why we love him, not just because he speaks well, but because he has the solutions to the problems, we face every day. To anyone out there interested in the manifesto, check out JBMuwonge website and you will have a full copy.

>>>>NUP MANIFESTO<<<<<

6. He Gives Us Hope in a Country That Thrives on Hopelessness

For decades, we have been conditioned to believe that nothing can change. That Uganda belongs to one man and his people. That elections are just formalities. That we should lower our expectations and survive instead of thrive. But Bobi Wine changed that narrative.

He has shown us that Uganda does not belong to Museveni it belongs to us. That we are not helpless victims we are the power. He has ignited a fire in us that can no longer be put out. Even when they block him, jail him, or rig elections, we remain determined and optimistic.

6. The Regime’s Fear Proves His Strength

The government’s response to Bobi Wine is all the proof we need that he is the real deal. Weak opponents do not get banned from radio and TV stations. They do not have their concerts blocked. They do not have their rallies blocked. They do not get arrested, beaten, and dragged to military courts on false charges. They do not force a regime to shut down the internet, turn off power, block social media or deploy thousands of soldiers just to stop them from speaking, their supporters don’t get all the treatment Museveni mete on NUP Supporters.

Everything Museveni does to suppress Bobi Wine is proof that they fear him. And if they fear him, it means he has the power to bring change.

7. He Has Turned Politics Into a Movement of the People.

Bobi Wine is not just a politician. He is a movement. Bobi Wine has made politics something that belongs to all of us, not just a few elites. He has united Ugandans across tribes, religions, and economic backgrounds. Rich or poor, Muslim or Christian, Muganda or Itesot, we all chant his name because we know he represents all of us.

We have seen wealthy businessmen donning NUP Tshirts stand with boda boda riders, teachers march alongside students, and villagers chant his name as passionately as those in the city.

To answer Jimmy Spire Ssentongo’s question Bobi Wine’s magnetism is a combination of his personal qualities, our desperation, and our collective hunger for change. He is a fearless leader in a time of fear. A voice of truth in a land of lies. A symbol of resistance in a country built on oppression.

Love him or hate him, Bobi Wine cannot be ignored. And for those of us who have suffered under this regime, who have only known one president in our entire lives, who are tired of watching Uganda sink deeper into dictatorship we know that Bobi Wine is not just a politician. He is our hope. And that is why we will never give up.

People Power, Our Power.

I remain #JBMuwonge

Email: contact@jbmuwonge.com

Website: www.jbmuwonge.com

So, Museveni and his henchmen have continuously labeled H.E. Bobi Wine as being funded by the West, a claim that is entirely false. Ironically, these same people are now the ones lamenting and crying after Trump halted their funding.

This exposes their hypocrisy and raises an important question that I need you to pay attention to: Is it America’s responsibility to fund us as a nation? Should we, as Africans, continue looking to the West for survival even after trump Trump Cuts Aid, or should we take charge of our own destiny? We must all answer this.

That put aside, Trump Foreign aid freeze should serve as a wake-up call to all African leaders: handouts from the West will never and never develop our nations. True development comes from within, through the proper management of taxes, national resources, prioritizing the welfare of citizens, and fostering self-reliance. Instead of begging for aid, Our governments must focus on tax efficiency, industrialization, value addition to raw materials, and fighting corruption that drains billions from public coffers.

Take Uganda under dictator Museveni as an example, a regime so financially mismanaged that it has to sometines borrow money just to pay civil servants, what a shame. Uganda’s public debt has skyrocketed beyond 90 trillion shillings, with a significant portion being external debt. Yet, there is close to non to show for it. Infrastructure projects are riddled with inflated contracts, funds meant for healthcare and education are looted, and public services are in a state of decay. Just take a look at the government hospitals and schools near you.

Meanwhile, the ruling elite enjoys lavish lifestyles, flying in private jets and driving luxury cars, getting medical care from London, India, USA etc all at the expense of the struggling taxpayer.

All you need to know Uganda isn’t an isolated case because Across Africa, Majority of leaders have failed to harness the immense wealth of the continent. Despite abundant natural resources; gold, oil, diamonds, fertile land, and a youthful population, many African nations remain dependent on foreign aid and predatory loans. China, the IMF, and Western donors continue to tighten their grip, dictating policies that serve their interests while keeping Africa trapped in debt. How can a continent so rich remain so poor? So sad they’re all crying after Trump halted the aid.

The answer lies in leadership. Africa cannot progress under dictairs like Museveni who prioritize personal enrichment over national development. We must break free from this cycle of dependency and debt. It is time for African leaders to: Actually Trump is instead helping us to be self reliant.

>Reduce bloated government expenditures by cutting unnecessary administrative costs, excessive military spending, and luxury benefits for politicians.

>Invest in industries and manufacturing to ensure Africa exports finished products instead of raw materials, which enrich foreign economies.

>Strengthen accountability mechanisms to eliminate corruption, enforce transparency, and recover stolen public funds

>Empower local businesses by supporting small and medium enterprises, creating policies that favor homegrown industries over foreign monopolies.

>Develop a self-reliant mindset where Africa finances its own development instead of begging for aid that comes with strings attached.

The future of Africa lies in economic independence, self-sufficiency, and visionary leadership. We must demand better from those in power and reject leaders who keep us in perpetual poverty while mortgaging our future to foreign interests. It is time for Africa to rise, not as a charity case for the West, but as a strong, self-sustaining continent built by its own people.

I remain #Jbmuwonge

contact@jbmuwonge.com

#Peoplepowerourpower