Yiga Wamala, a top assistant to Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, has stirred up controversy by declaring that the long-time leader would not be ousted by polls.
Senior Presidential Adviser Wamala made the comments prior to Thursday’s election, in which Museveni is running for a seventh term. Since 1986, Museveni has governed Uganda.
Wamala downplayed the importance of people staying at polling places in a video that went popular on social media, saying that neither party representatives nor citizens would tally the votes.
He added that Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the son of President Museveni and the present Chief of Defence Forces of Uganda, is being positioned to succeed his father.
“Even the votes you are going to count won’t be visible to you.
“If you continue to weep for Museveni, Muhoozi Kainerugaba will follow.” Will you murder one another? “You keep yelling,” he said.
Voters should cast their ballots and leave polling places, stating that they will not participate in the vote-counting process, according to Wamala.
Online responses to his remarks have been mixed, with proponents of the ruling class defending his remarks while detractors have characterised them as a violation of democratic values.