Bobi Wine withdraws election petition from Ugandan court

Ugandan opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as Bobi Wine, said on Monday he was withdrawing his case over election fraud from the country’s highest court, the media reported.
The singer-turned-politician ran against longtime incumbent President Yoweri Museveni in the January election.
The country’s electoral commission declared Museveni won a sixth term with over 58 percent of the vote, something Bobi Wine disputed as fraudulent.
“We are withdrawing from the courts but we are not opting for violence.
“We are withdrawing the case from Mr. Owiny Dollo’s court,” he said, as reported by Uganda’s Daily Monitor newspaper.
Judge Dollo and two other judges refused to recuse themselves from the case, despite calls from Bobi Wine to do so claiming they had close ties to the president, the Monitor reported.
The ruling National Resistance Movement threatened to force Bobi Wine to pay legal expenses incurred during the short-lived court case, something his lawyer said he was willing to do, the newspaper reported.
Bobi Wine drew international attention for his unlikely bid to unseat Museveni in the January vote.
In the run-up to the election, the prominent performer was detained several times and sparked nationwide unrest that left scores dead in violence with law enforcement.
According to the electoral commission results, which he disputed, Bobi Wine secured nearly 35 percent of the vote.
More from Peoples Gazette

Agriculture
We facilitated N148 billion in agricultural investments in 2020: NIRSAL
“We have grown our balance sheet to N140 billion; our equity by 1,415 percent and our total assets by 87 percent.”

Economy
Lawan, Gbajabiamila hail Buhari for near-zero economic growth
“Our economy has grown – the Gross Domestic Product – by 0.1 per cent and that is remarkable,” Senate President Ahmed Lawan said.

NationWide
Hundeyin, Chin’ono, FemCo win Gatefield journalism awards
The award is a public service journalism initiative to recognise and reward journalists, citizen reporters and social justice newsmakers in Africa.

Politics
PDP mocks APC over extension of “flopped” membership registration
The membership drive of the APC has faced hitches since it commenced.

Politics
Court slams N70m bail on Okorocha’s aides
The magistrate also insisted that a traditional ruler in the state must stand in as a surety.

NationWide
Herdsmen: Bala Mohammed plotting to kill me, Gov. Ortom cries out
“Anyone who is not willing to respect the laws of our country should go and meet Bala Mohammed,” Mr. Ortom said.