Uganda: No, These Photos Do Not Show Ugandan Police Using CCTV to Track Opposition Leader Bobi Wine

9 February 2026
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Grace Gichuhi

IN SHORT: Posts on social media claim to show Ugandan police surveilling Bobi Wine using CCTV cameras. But reverse image searches show the images are old and depict general police operations and equipment training.

A collage of photos is circulating on Facebook with the claim that Uganda police officers used CCTV systems to trace the exact location where opposition politician Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, popularly known as Bobi Wine, allegedly shot his latest video.

Closed-circuit television, or CCTV, refers to a system of video cameras that send footage to a limited set of monitors for security, surveillance and law enforcement purposes.

One of the photos shows several uniformed police officers seated inside what appears to be a police operations or CCTV monitoring room, working on desktop computers and viewing multiple screens. In another photo, officers seem to be in discussion, a setup consistent with routine police surveillance, coordination or administrative work.

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Bobi Wine is the leader of Uganda's National Unity Platform, the country's largest opposition party and a major challenger to president Yoweri Museveni.

In January 2026, Uganda held general elections, in which voters elected the president, members of parliament and other local government leaders. The elections were highly contested between Museveni and Bobi Wine.

After the elections, Bobi Wine said he went into hiding after escaping a house raid at his home. He said security forces had surrounded his residence and restricted his movement, forcing him to leave for his own safety. Since then, he has been staying in undisclosed locations while continuing to speak to supporters and the public through online statements.

This photo has also been posted here, here, here, here and here.

But does this collage really show the police monitoring and surveilling Bobi Wine, using CCTV? We checked.

Old, unrelated photos

A Google reverse image search of one of the photos in the collage leads to a 2018 Voice of America video discussing surveillance practices in Uganda more broadly.

A Google reverse image search shows that a second photo was first posted online on 15 June 2021. It was published in an article on the Hytera website titled "Hytera modernises Uganda Police Force's two-way radio communications".

Hytera is a technology company that provides professional communication systems, including two-way radios, for use by security and emergency services. According to the article, the image shows police officers being trained on the company's communication equipment.

There is no evidence to show that Ugandan police officers have been monitoring Bobi Wine using CCTV cameras.

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Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. X @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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