How NUP lost speaker elections even with majority councilors

Kampala, Uganda | Despite having super-majorities in urban councils, the National Unity Platform-NUP party lost a couple of speakership and deputy speaker seats to independent candidates or those of the ruling National Resistance Movement-NRM in polls held this week.

In Lubaga division, the NUP candidate Rehema Fugge was defeated by the NRM candidate Twaha Mayanja, in a council where NUP has 64 councillors elected on its ticket against the 11 members of the NRM. The story was the same in other areas like Makindye and Kampala Central, forcing enraged NUP supporters to take to social media to show their displeasure, accusing their leaders of betraying the struggle.

But this outcome was not surprising. While the party carried out primaries to get local government speakers last week, chaos broke out at the party headquarters after the results of the vote were declared. Supporters accused councillors of accepting bribes to influence their voting decisions.

Led by renowned NUP activist Sauda Madada, supporters said it was unacceptable to elect leaders who are NUP in name only. They said such positions should be taken over by party zealots who have been in the trenches with their President Kyagulanyi Robert Ssentamu as he crisscrossed the country looking for votes, and in the process braving the brunt of state brutality.

‘How can you give the card to known NRM supporters and leave the foot soldiers. These are the people we have been with in the struggle and it should be them to be given leadership positions,’ a teary Madada shouted to the Election Management Committee led by the former Bugweri Woman MP contestant Mercy Walukamba.