Cartoonist and political scholar Jim Spire Ssentongo has offered a striking analogy to describe patterns of alleged election manipulation in Uganda, following Thursday’s contentious polls.
Ssentongo suggested that the intensity of rigging often reflects the popularity of the ruling regime.
“The more unpopular a high-handed regime becomes, the worse the rigging gets,” he said, noting that when a government still enjoys some public support, manipulations can be subtle and disguised.
“When it becomes irredeemably unpopular, rigging becomes harder to hide because it has to be massive and forceful,” he added.
Using a vivid metaphor, Ssentongo compared minor manipulation to stealing a goat—easy and discreet—while large-scale rigging resembles taking an elephant, requiring overt force and dramatic measures to succeed.
His analogy comes amid widespread opposition complaints over vote tampering, restrictions on social media, and limited access to polling data.
The Thursday elections, which saw incumbent President Yoweri Museveni seeking re-election, have been marked by reports of internet shutdowns and disruptions in opposition communications, fueling suspicions of systemic manipulation.
Opposition leaders allege the results were skewed in favor of the ruling party, though the government maintains that the process was transparent and lawful.
As counting continues, civil society groups are calling for independent monitoring to ensure that final results reflect the will of the electorate.
Ssentongo’s perspective frames the ongoing controversy as a cautionary tale about governance, popularity, and the lengths regimes may go to secure authority.