President Museveni of Uganda, once the darling of Western governments, including Britain, fell victim to a disease well-known among Africa’s leaders – third termism.

He was supposed to step down from office last year, but instead changed the constitution to allow him to stand for a third term.

The former rebel leader, who took power in 1986 after winning a five-year civil war, has become increasingly autocratic in the past five years. He rejected pleas from former comrades and diplomats to stand aside, saying that he was the only person “with sufficient vision to lead this country”.

The Constitutional Court ruled against him initially. He called the judges biased and cautioned that they were not above the people. At the same time as bullying them into a change of mind, he sent opposition leaders to jail on charges of treason. The Opposition say that the poll in February last year, which returned him with a landslide, was rigged.

The President now relies on a tight-knit group of sycophants, including many members of his own family.

“We had high hopes when we won the bush war but now he has been in power for 20 years and we see that he is turning himself into a president for life,” said Augustine Ruzindana, a former close ally.

However, the President remains hugely popular with the masses. He says that he would like to retire to his farm and cattle, but that his country needs him.

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