By Mulengera Reporters
In a strongly-worded dossier, close to 20 kunga committee leaders and adherents from Mityana North Constituency have enumerated to NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya enumerating to him names of officials who must be sanctioned for sanity to return to their electoral area. Comprising of elected councillors, LC3 Chairpersons and former flag bearers who stood on the NUP ticket in 2021, the leaders indicate that NUP is on the verge of getting politically obliterated.
They also cite instances to demonstrate that the ongoing registration of members into NUP registers based at village level has been infiltrated and hijacked by NRM. They are from the sub counties of Bulera, Kikandwa and Kalangalo. They complain against NUP secretariat officials namely Dr. Moses Kanaabi and DM Kawuma who were deployed to oversee the establishment of Kunga committees in Mityana North.
That the duo deliberately excluded serious leaders and filled the committees with people who are too junior and ineffective. That the motivation was to lock out whoever they doubted would support their favored Isaac Tomusange to take the NUP ticket against incumbent area MP Mohammed Nsegumire Kibedi of NRM. That even when there are other NUP cadres wanting the flag for Mityana North, the duo showed open bias in favor of Isaac Tomusange at the expense of Dr. Gordon Sematiko and Bishop Tomusange.
That the duo one time organized what they called a consultative meeting of NUP leaders from Mityana North only for the same to be hosted in Isaac Tomusange’s home in Kyengera yet matters to be discussed were contentious and one in which the same Tomusange had an interest. That those who attended were given transport refund and an allowance of Shs70,000 for which they were asked to be grateful to Isaac Tomusange.
The duo is also accused of unfairly ousting Rose Mukabalisa who did a lot of hard work as a volunteer in 2021 as the Mityana North registrar for NUP. That at the time Mukabalisa was supposed to be appreciated for her sacrifice, the duo caused her ouster in favour of someone they were sure would-be pro-Isaac Tomusange. The petitioners remind Rubongoya that they protested this by writing to him through Mityana NUP Chairman Godfrey Kasiita but didn’t get any response.
The petitioners inform Rubongoya of their rejection of Saul Paul Nakisinde Kiviri who was put in place as the new NUP registrar for their constituency. They say he is biased and compromised in favor of Isaac Tomusange. They also protest as to why the process of Mukabalisa’s removal wasn’t consultative as opposed to imposing people from Kavule. They claim that Kiviri is actually a campaigner and supporter of Isaac Tomusange inside the NUP structures and wonder how he can be fair to others as a registrar for the party.
That Kiviri, to whom Mukabalisa has never had the opportunity to properly hand over office, one time called a meeting of all aspirants interested in Mityana North MP Seat and had them agree on people to be deployed as election officers for the party at village, parish and sub county levels. That time came and all the names which had been agreed upon by all including Sematiko and the two Tomusanges were disregarded and replaced with a list of well-known supporters of Isaac Tomusange.
They claim that some of these are well known NRM people and give the examples of two villages namely Kisosonkole and Nabitete as some of those whose election officers are well known NRMs.
That in many villages, the registers to facilitate registration of NUP members at village level were given to people who aren’t known and accepted among the NUP fraternity in Mityana North. That in some cases like in Bulera sub county, hundreds of young people who wanted to register were left out simply because their pro-Isaac Tomusange loyalty wouldn’t be guaranteed. They wonder why people would be left out and election officers be denied registration books yet actors like Florence Buwombeka, Sentanga of Bali and Julula had hundreds of NUP party membership cards lying idle.
They claim that Florence is a sister to a powerful insider at NUP headquarters who is overtly biased in favour of Isaac Tomusange. That she is also a campaign manager for Isaac. That in Kalangalo sub county, NUP recruitment membership cards are very scarce yet a one Robinah Kayanja of Kiryokya village always has them in plenty lying idle. That she only sells or gives them to people she is sure are pro-Isaac Tomusange. That in Kikandwa sub county, membership cards are scarce yet a one Kevina of Matte trading center always has them in hundreds and is only comfortable selling to those she is sure are pro-Isaac Tomusange.
The petitioners ask Rubongoya to clarify on claims that Kavule has taken a decision to ring-fence the Mityana North MP Seat (which the party in 2021 narrowly lost to NRM with less than 500 votes) for Isaac Tomusange even if that comes at the cost of stifling growth of NUP and genuine membership recruitment.
They also refer to the meeting of 26th June that was held in Kiryokya trading centre for all aspirants for Mityana North MP only to end up being bangled up in favour of Isaac Tomusange. That on arrival, the other aspirants were asked to worship, thank and praise Isaac Tomusange for donating that same premises to host NUP offices for Mityana North. That the meeting ended in bloody chaos as supporters targeted beating up Dr. Kanaabi Moses and DM Kawuma only to be saved by the intervention of Mityana LC5 Chairman Patrick Mugisha who the petitioners ask Rubongoya to empower to be able to supervise the activities of the two men in Mityana North regarding Kunga committees.
They also ask Rubongoya to totally recall Moses Kanaabi from Mityana North affairs because he is too proud besides being pro-Isaac Tomusange. They also ask him to clarify on claims that all NUP membership cards that were ever issued with the signature and stamp of former registrar Rose Mukabalisa are fake and unrecognized by the party. They demand that the party prepares to refund all young people who paid up and took out those same membership cards because for years Mukabalisa was the known NUP registrar for that area and even when she was relieved of her duties, there was no official pronouncement which is why many continued dealing with her thinking she was still recognized by Kavule. They also want Kiviri to be forced to return NUP registers which he forceful took away from village-based election officers who are now stuck and unable to effect membership registration.
They also ask the SG to inquire into circumstances under which Kiviri calls NUP Mityana North meetings and hosts them at his school in Kiboga which is far away and costly. They make reference to the meeting of 22nd June which was filled with Boda Boda riders each of whom was allegedly paid Shs10,000 to disrupt that consultative meeting by heckling and booing into silence whoever spoke in favour of any other aspirant apart from Isaac Tomusange.
Apart from complaining against Ms Faustina Nalubega Bitano, who wants to replace Joyce Bagala as Mityana Woman MP, the petitioners demand that Rubongoya withdraws Kiviri from Mityana North besides doing the same to Dr. Moses Kanaabi and DM Kawuma. They want the SG to convene a big meeting of all stakeholders and engage in some fact-finding before it gets too late. They also want fresh mass membership registration to be undertaken for Mityana North because the current register aimed chiefly at locking out those whose Isaac Tomusange loyalty couldn’t be ascertained.
In 2021, NUP (which won elsewhere in Mityana) narrowly lost Mityana North to NRM’s Nsegumire. He won with 13,784 votes against NUP’s Dr. Gordon Sematiko’s 13,557. Others were Didas Kayonga (485), Byron Mutyaba (406), Fred Grace Kintu (551), Onesmus Kasule (332) and Watson Ronald Keeya (1404). (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
