National Unity Platform (NUP) last week suspended five of its most powerful leaders from Busoga over infighting and misconduct according to a statement from Kamwokya.
Those fired include; Bamu Lulenzi, Moses Bigirwa, Andrew Muwanguzi, Saulo Nsongambi and Ayagalachi Jamal Mukuve.
The development has since drawn criticism and disgruntlement from members and supporters of the party in the sub-region. There have been loud voices flaunting NUP President Robert Kyagulanyi for backstabbing allies who have worked tirelessly to entrench party ideals in the region.
Bobi Wine defeated President Museveni in nine of the eleven districts of Busoga, becoming the only place outside his native Buganda that won.
A top leader in the ranks of the Kamwokya-based party in the Busoga sub-region has given his take on the chaos in the party, revealing that only a miracle can save the organization from an impending fatal crash.
Mr Nsimbi Muzamilu is the Chairperson of NUP for the Kaliro Muslim district. He also carried the party flag for Member of Parliament Bulamogi North West where he came second behind Cooperatives Minister Frederick Ngobi Gume.
In an exclusive interview with Watchdog, Nsimbi dug deep into the crisis that has exposed almost irreparable fault lines in the party. He projects a mass exodus of members in the coming month, adding that leaders at the top are culpable for all the chaos at hand.
Nsimbi narrates that the escalation of things has not started from the blue but the red flags have been there since 2020 but were rather ignored by technocrats at Kamwokya.
Egoism, intrigue, abnormal desire for money, rumour mongering and lack of foresight are strongly believed to be at the forefront of the ugly crisis threatening Bobi Wine’s party.
The suspension of Hajji Musa Misango by Kamwokya, Nsimbi nites, was the genesis of the party’s regression in Busoga, a shortfall he is pessimistic they will ever be able to recover from.
Ahead of 2021, Misango was appointed by Bobi Wine to the party’s Electoral Commission and charged with the identification of candidates. He was, thus, placed in charge of the whole of Eastern Uganda where he combed all corners of the region to deliver, much to the appreciation of Kamwokya.
Miranda, a fairly powerful activist economically was able to support most of the errands from his pocket, extending the same to party candidates at the different levels during the rough times of COVID-19. He, as a result, become a father figure to many members and when he was humiliated at the incompetency of those who make decisions at Kamwokya, Nsimbi says the group was destined to fall into deep shit.
“Trouble started when those boys grew too greedy and someone needed to confront them. They would clash among themselves and solicit bribes from whoever was willing to fall prey to their evil plots.” He notes.
That there was a situation where Bamu Lulenzi and Bigirwa received money to facilitate the nomination of candidates at different levels but ended up vanishing in thin air with cash, leaving colleagues in utter desperation.
” The Principal had summoned us for a meeting where it was revealed that the party had secured some funds for the candidates’ nomination but it was still not enough. We agreed in the meeting that we distribute the money available in an equitable manner so each one of us would receive a share and top-up. This money was given to those boys and they disappeared with it all, leaving us all disillusioned.” Nsimbi reminisces.
The same group, Nsimbe reveals, swindled money meant for polling day activities, one of the factors he says adversely affected the performance of most candidates in the sub-region. That Lulenzi and Bigirwa received this money meant to be sent to polling officials as facilitation but they opted to divert the money for their personal use.
The above account closely rhymes with that of Hajji Musa Misango who says was meant to receive that money for the task but instead delegated the two to receive and distribute it among the beneficiaries. They, however, switched off their phones after receipt of the money.
Nsimbe insists Misango, being financially sounder than most of his colleagues in the struggle was believed to be immune to most temptations regarding money. His seniority in age and status also meant he was always there to correct his colleagues whenever they erred. Besides, he never belonged to any of the warring cliques meaning that his neutrality was an indispensable asset to the party.
Seeing that he was always tough on their misdeeds, Nsimbe reveals that the Bigirwas plotted to bring him down. He had held a leaders’ meeting in Jinja where it was agreed that a strategy is mobilised to reach out to supporters on the grass root to establish concrete party structures to facilitate the election of leaders who would be accountable to their voters. It was agreed that members would pull some money amongst themselves to facilitate the process. The rivalling leaders saw an opportunity to pounce and crash their man once and for all. They misreported him at Kamwokya, that he was soliciting money from party members which Nsimbe swears was not true and his accusers too knew it.
Nsimbi’s defence of Misanga coordinates with that of Mr Lyada Moses- former MP candidate for Bunyole West Constituency in Butaleja district. Lyada says Misango was the type of leader that ensured harmony among most of his inexperienced subordinates and his loss could continue hurting the party longer than expected.
Nsimbi, further, indicates that Misango was summoned for a meeting at Kamwokya, attended by most of his tormentors and asked out without an opportunity to be heard. He says he had been the backbone of most of the leaders and his suspension served to derail members a great deal.
Misanho has since resigned from NUP work spending most of his time with family in Gayaaza.
According to Nsimbi, the atmosphere in NUP is hopeless. Members seem to have lost hope in the leadership of the party, mainly due to the way they handle things. He says there has been no framework established to facilitate inclusive dialogue for members to resolve issues.
” I have myself been to the party to present proposals for the future but instead of an engagement, I was lambasted by the bosses for fronting something against what they believe in. My issue was as simple as erecting democratic structures from the grassroots but I was lambasted. Such is the level of arrogance down there.” He reveals.
Unless something is done swiftly, Nsimbe insists his party could be washed out of Busoga in a matter of months. He says the party is in disarray and it seems a very bad time for anyone to identify with them at the moment since almost everybody feels like quitting.
Asked which interventions Kamwokya should embark on to put things back on track, Nsimbe says one thing. Pray! He says his party is at a point where only divine intervention can redeem them.
The leadership crisis in Busoga has left a divided party with most observers stating that the punishment was harsh and exposing it in the media was a grand blunder.
Bobi Wine’s enviable popularity in Busoga is expected to drastically decline especially with Museveni seemingly observing the situation through his fingers waiting for an opportunity to pounce and regain a former territory that was only usurped by Wine in 2021.
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