Uganda’s president shoots for 30 years in power by announcing 4th presidential bid

Uganda’s president announces bid for 4th term

KAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda’s president says he wants to extend his rule to 30 years by running for a fourth term in 2011.

President Yoweri Museveni said late Saturday he will seek the nomination of the ruling National Resistance Movement Party. The party will meet next month to choose their candidate for the 5-year presidential post.

Museveni led an insurgency to take power in 1986. He won his first election in 1996 and initially was hailed as a new kind of African leader for agreeing to term limits and economic liberalization. But in 2005, parliament voted to remove presidential term limits, opening the way for Museveni’s 2006 victory.

In recent years, he has also drawn criticism for allegedly consolidating power and quashing dissent.