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Radio France Internationale
Radio France Internationale
RFI

Ugandan police arrest pop star and lawmaker Bobi Wine

Ugandan pop star turned opposition MP, Robert Kyagulanyi, delivers a speech outside his home in Kampala, Uganda, after returning from the United States on September 20, 2018. Kyagulanyi, 36 and better known as singer Bobi Wine (AFP/Isaac Kasamani)

Ugandan police on Monday took away pop star and MP Bobi Wine after shutting down one of his concerts.

TV footage shows security forces also fired tear gas and used a water cannon to disperse his fans.

The authorities cancelled Wine’s show at his private club on the south shores of Lake Victoria on Sunday

Here is Uganda Police spokesperson Fred Enanga explaining the decision:

Fred Enanga 23/04/2019 Listen

But on Monday Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, remained defiant.

Here is his response:

Bobi Wine 23/04/2019 Listen

He tried to reach the venue on Monday, but clashes broke out as his supporters threw stones and police responded with tear gas and water cannon.

Concert promoter and Wine supporter Moses Mugwanya told AFP that the singer was taken away with other political opposition figures.

"Police have broken into the car he was in and forcefully removed him, and put him in a police van and have driven him away," he said.

Later a police spokesman said Wine was driven by police back to his home in Kampala's northern outskirts.

The 36-year-old spearheaded protests against the lifting of presidential age limits. Yoweri Museveni, 74, has ruled the country since his rebel movement took power in 1986. He looks set to run for a sixth mandate in 2021 after the Supreme Court last week upheld a previous decision to scrap the 75 age cap.

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