KAMPALA, Uganda — National Unity Platform presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu has launched a mobile application designed to bypass potential internet shutdowns by using Bluetooth technology to monitor next week’s election results.
The app, named Bitchart, was unveiled Jan. 1 during Kyagulanyi’s New Year address at the NUP headquarters in Makerere Kavule. The move is a direct response to the 2021 general election, when a four-day nationwide internet blackout disrupted the party’s previous monitoring tool, U-Vote.
Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, said the software allows users to share images of Declaration of Results forms and polling updates without a standard data connection.
“The regime is plotting an internet shutdown, as they have done in past elections, to block communication and prevent citizens from organizing,” Kyagulanyi said.
How the Bitchart app works
Bitchart functions as an offline communication network by utilizing Bluetooth mesh networking. Unlike traditional apps that require a central server reached via the internet, Bitchart allows smartphones to connect directly to one another.
When a user at a polling station captures a photo of a results form, the app transmits that data to nearby devices within Bluetooth range. Those devices then act as relays, passing the information to other users until the data reaches a point where it can be securely stored or uploaded once a connection becomes available. This “daisy-chain” method creates a localized web of information that remains active even when cellular towers or internet gateways are disabled.
Government response
Uganda Communications Commission Executive Director Nyombi Thembo said there are currently no plans to disrupt connectivity for the 2026 polls.
“Our mandate is to ensure that there is ubiquitous internet access at all times,” Thembo said during a radio interview Saturday. “As of now, there is no resolution to switch off the internet.”
During his address, the 43-year-old Kyagulanyi also outlined a transition strategy, claiming the NUP has begun talks with local and international stakeholders to prepare for a peaceful transfer of power. He urged supporters to remain calm but vigilant, reiterating that the party’s path to change is through the ballot rather than violence.
Kyagulanyi is one of several candidates seeking to unseat President Yoweri Museveni, who is running for a seventh term. Other contenders include Nathan Nandala Mafabi of the FDC and Mugisha Muntu of the ANT.
