A good number of politicians especially those belonging to ruling party NRM have failed to retain their elective posts in the just concluded general elections.
Particularly in the Central Region, the NRM candidates have been heavily trounced by candidates from Robert Kyagulanyi’s young political party-National Unity Platform (NUP).
One would agree or disagree but the People Power Movement and the formation of NUP, full of young people created a wider political awareness to the young generation who once thought that leadership was only for old people only to realise that they can also be part and parcel in the administration of the country.
Because of the wave, many NUP candidates especially in the Central Region have emerged winners. And many of the victors are young people who had no political experience but they only thrived on the courage they got from their principal Kyagulanyi who vehemently showed them that everything is possible.
Leaving alone the central, in other regions some NRM flag bearers lost to independent candidates and most of these were youths although NRM leaning.
It’s from that background that some NRM cadres who seem to see that the only way their party can to survive the NUP wave and other storms to come that may come in future, is to embrace the idea of handing over party leadership party to the young blood.
The State Minister for environment Beatrice Anywar who lost her Kitgum municipality seat to Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) Denis Onekalit Amere is among those who think that if NRM fails to embrace the idea of involving the youth at the top leadership of soon, the party will weaken in future.
Anywar who was speaking about her loss over the weekend said that currently the political space of Uganda is filled with the strong storm of the youth who have seen that it’s possible to join politics. However, if NRM continues to ignore them, it’s going to face challenges.
She said; “Young people have shown interest in Uganda’s politics, like it or not our population majority is made up of youth so in any competition you will not win when a young person is there. The clear example is in the Central, credible people lost seats to young ones because the voters always want to give their votes to people with whom they share common features and age is one of the major factors.”
“As a member of NRM, it’s clear that we are still existing but we must seriously look into this issue. We must open the doors so wide for youth leadership in our party. We shall guide them as the elders but we need to give them chances before it’s too late.”
Amelia Anne Kyambadde the Minister of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives who lost the Mawokota North Constituency seat to musician Hillary Kiyaga (Dr Hilderman) is also one of the party cadres who think it was high time the youth were given chance to run some of the party’s affairs.
In her interview after her loss, she agreed that if the party doesn’t change its structures it will not manage the coming storms.
“Yes, maybe we have overstayed in power. But also, there somethings in our party that we must deal with. This is the right time we find ways of working with each other and learn how to co-exist. Because we need to rebrand our party depending on what our country’s population average,”Kyambadde asserted.
“I think it’s time for our chairman to come and start imparting values in his subordinates rather than telling them that this must be done like this, I did this and so forth. We need to reduce the commercialization of Uganda’s politics. We need to bring new entrants on board because new people come with different ideas, but you find that we don’t have another generation, we are the same people. This is the time we need to think about succession in the party and continuity otherwise we can drive this country into Anarchy.”
The issue of young blood taking over NRM party was last year fronted by Minister of State for Lands, Persis Namuganza Persis while campaigning for the post of the second vice National chairperson of NRM party.
“I promise to be the voice of the young generation and women in CEC. This is the time we the young people get our voices to the top leadership,” she said.
Although Namuganza, 34 lost to Speaker Rebecca Kadaga who is 62, her campaign slogan of allowing the young blood into the party’s leadership never went unnoticed since many people backed her up especially some big wigs within the party. Given the effect of Buganda region, Namuganza could have been with a foresight of what could happen.
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