The recent humiliating defeat suffered by the ruling NRM party to the infant opposition National Unity Platform (NUP)in the Kawempe North bye election continues to generate debates from people of all walks of life and corners of the country.
NUP’s candidate lawyer Elias Luyimbazi Nalukoola, who won with a landslide victory garnered 17,764 votes beating his closest rival Farida Nambi of NRM who got 8,593 votes.
However, the ruling NRM party has rejected the results and its Secretary General Richard Todwong announced plans to run to the court of law to challenge the victory which they say was riddled with irregularities and malpractices.
While the party leadership plans to petition court, the NRM chairperson for Kamuli Municipality Hajji Badru Watongola says the defeat should serve as a warning to NRM bigwigs.
“…most of these bosses are detached with reality and only drive in posh cars and get holed in air-conditioned hotels dining and wining during campaigns and issue directives on phones…” he alleged.
In a chilling Tik-Tok short video, the influential 65 year old veteran politician and businessman counsels the NRM leaders at the Kyadondo Road offices to always engage and involve the grassroot mobilisers including structures who are in touch with realities on the ground.
He claims some of the NRM boss are money-hungry by always wanting to be in charge of money meant to facilitate elections but that the money ends up not reaching the target groups but individual bosses.
Hajji Badru Watongola whose daughter Hon Kayaga Baroda Watongola is the MP Kamuli Municipality after the demise of her mother Hajjat Rehema Tiwuwe Watongola has made a passionate appeal to President Yoweri Museveni to send credible people on the ground.
“…mzee some of your people do not tell you the truth to cover up their mistakes of mishandling issues by sidelining real mobilisers and cadres because of greed and intrigue…”, he charged.
Watongola says much as its democracy that any candidate can win, it’s embarrassing for the ruling NRM party to always lose nearly all the bye elections where NRM big shots are the culprits.
Hajji Bardu Watongola has vowed to mobilize massively ahead of the mouthwatering general elections in 2026 when he wants his daughter Hon Kayaga Baroda Watongola and President Yoweri Museveni to bounce back with landslide victories.
He also dismisses as false narratives being propagated by some elements including NRM that the opposition NUP has greatly penetrated Busoga once seen as the political block for the NRM party.
“…some people always want to use tricky statements to confuse the National NRM party chairman who is also Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni into releasing billions of cash which a handful of people squander…”, he remarked.
This is not the first loss the ruling party has suffered and its almost becoming a tradition that by elections in Uganda are won by the opposition.
As can be recalled NRM lost the Oyam North MP slot to UPC’s Dr Eunice Apio Otuko and Dokolo District Woman MP also to UPC’s Hon Sarah Aguti Nyankori, among others.
Some analysts say Kampala City and most urban constituencies are a no-go zone for the ruling NRM, and it’s likely to be worse in the 2026 general elections when opposition will sweep all urban centers where people have developed fatigue with the government due to poor service delivery.
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