Ugandan authorities partially restored internet services after President Yoweri Museveni won a seventh term, extending his rule into a fifth decade.

Internet users in Uganda reported partial reconnections around 11 p.m. local time on Saturday, with service providers noting that authorities ordered restoration of internet access excluding social media platforms.

The move follows Museveni’s landslide victory in Thursday’s election, in which the 81-year-old incumbent secured 71.6% of the vote. Opposition candidate Bobi Wine, a pop star-turned-politician, received 24%.

State regulators had previously cut internet access to curb “misinformation, disinformation, electoral fraud and related risks,” but critics said the shutdown was intended to cement Museveni’s grip on power and limit transparency during the vote.

A joint observer report from the African Union and regional blocs criticised the military’s role in the election and the internet blackout, calling the process restrictive.

Museveni has been in power since 1986 and, if he completes his current term, will have ruled Uganda for nearly half a century by 2031, making him Africa’s third longest-serving head of state.

Despite the partial internet restoration, Kampala’s streets and markets remain unusually quiet, with vendors and motorcycle taxi operators reporting low activity as residents remain wary following the elections.

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