Africa youth boom on display as Uganda leader faces pop star
KAMPALA, Uganda — Call it a struggle for the soul of the ghetto.
Uganda’s longtime president this month went on a whirlwind tour of some of the capital’s poorest slums, handing out checks totalling over a quarter-million dollars.
The next day, residents turned up in the red colours of the opposition and instead gave thanks to President Yoweri Museveni’s newest and biggest challenger, a crusading pop star and rookie lawmaker who styles himself as the “ghetto president.”
The 36-year-old singer who performs as Bobi Wine is going toe-to-toe with one of Africa’s longest-serving presidents, inspiring young people across the continent who are fed up with aging leaders they say are out of touch.