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Bebe Cool defends Bobi Wine’s arrest amid unrest in Uganda


Ugandan musician Moses Sssali alias Bebe Cool appeared to be backing arrest and detention of his colleague and presidential candidate Bobi Wine, real name Robert Kyagulanyi.

This comes amid rising political tensions and riots in the country following Wine’s arrest.

Bebe Cool, who has confessed his support for incumbent Yoweri Museveni, who has ruled Uganda since 1986, suggested that Wine’s supporters had been chaotic.

“I saw a police officer being attacked by a hammer-wielding goon. How on earth would one do this and not expect retaliation by the armed forces?” asked Cool.

“My candidate President Yoweri Museveni who I have supported and still have hope in is following the (Covid-19) guidelines 100%. I on the other hand have been holding processions while distributing face masks and t-shirts. Our opponents started with processions and later switched to mass campaign rallies in open fields without regard to the set guidelines and even started holding music concerts which are still prohibited during these times,” he added.

Wine, an opposition MP and presidential candidate in the February 2021 general election, was nabbed by Police on the campaign trail on Tuesday and spent the night behind bars in Jinja town.

Police said that he would be charged with violating Covid-19 regulations, which limit the number of people allowed to attend political campaigns in the East African nation.

The musician’s arrest has since sparked widespread demonstrations and chaotic scenes in the country, led by the capital Kampala, leaving scores dead and various properties destroyed.

Museveni, who has twice benefitted from a change in the constitution to prolong his stay in power, seeks to extend his 34-year rule in the 2021 poll against a strong push by youthful Wine.