By Aggrey Baba
A group of disgruntled Democratic Party (DP) members operating under the banner of “DP at Heart” on Saturday, launched an offensive against the party leadership headed by DP President Norbert Mao, also Laroo-Pece MP, accusing them of corruption, abuse of office, financial mismanagement and the destruction of internal party democracy.
The group, led by former Uganda Young Democrats (UYD) president who also served as the spokesperson of the party, Ismael Kiirya, petitioned both the Inspectorate of Government (IG) and the Electoral Commission (EC) demanding investigations into what they called a systemic misappropriation of party funds and assets, breaches of the Leadership Code Act and persistent violations of the party constitution.
The DP at Heart group dismissed claims that its members are proxies of any political faction within the party, insisting that they are ordinary Democrats concerned about what the rapid decline of Uganda’s oldest political party [DP].
They accused top party officials of diverting hundreds of millions of shillings during the party’s National Delegates Conference held in Mbarara last year.
According to the petition, substantial amounts of money were allocated for delegates’ welfare, accommodation and meals, but many delegates allegedly slept outside and went hungry throughout the conference. They further alleged that delegates from the Central Region were deliberately denied accommodation and meals for three consecutive days in order to frustrate them and force them to leave before participating in voting.
The disgruntled youths also claimed that DP members were subjected to inflated nomination and participation fees while several senior officials allegedly exempted themselves from paying the same charges.
“These funds remain unaccounted for to date. We now want a full forensic audit into the management of resources during the conference, Kiirya said.
Another major concern raised by the group relates to the disappearance of a party printing press reportedly acquired before the 2016 General Election at a cost exceeding Ugx 250 million. Kiirya argued that the printery was purchased using party resources and played a critical role in supporting campaign activities during the election period.
However, the machine allegedly disappeared shortly after the elections under unclear circumstances.
The group says party auditors have consistently raised questions regarding the whereabouts of the printery in audit reports over the past five years, but no satisfactory explanation has ever been provided.
They now want the IG to investigate the acquisition, management and eventual disposal of the asset, including recovery of its value if wrongdoing is established.
The petition also revives long-standing disputes surrounding the party constitution, with the Yound Democrats alleging that irregular amendments were introduced into the constitution by party officials before it was submitted to the EC.
According to the activists, the controversial amendments were never approved by the appropriate party organs.
They noted that although the EC reportedly declined to gazette the disputed constitution following complaints from some party members, Mao and his cabinet continue to operate using the contested document. Now, the disgruntled group says this has created confusion and enabled Mao and his team to make critical decisions based on provisions that lack legal backing.
DP at Heart also accuses the leadership of deliberately refusing to convene key party organs, including the National Council, Parliamentary Group and, in some cases, the National Executive Committee (NEC).
According to them, DP is increasingly being run by a small group of individuals who make major decisions without consulting established structures as required by the constitution, further alleging that grassroots structures across the country were deliberately dismantled ahead of preparations for the controversial 2025 National Delegates Conference which was convened in Mbarara.
Now, they claim that no primary elections were conducted to elect delegates as required under party rules and that an election management committee operating under the office of Secretary General Gerald Siranda instead handpicked delegates and candidates based on loyalty.
They pointed to the recent public remarks allegedly made by Mao acknowledging that grassroots structures were no longer operational, saying that such statements raise questions about the legitimacy of delegates who attended the conference.
In their petition, the DP at Heart group also want the Inspectorate of Government to conduct lifestyle audits on several senior party officials whose wealth and assets, according to the complainants, appear inconsistent with their known sources of income, saying investigations should establish whether any DP officials enriched themselves through abuse of office or misuse of party resources.
In their petition to the EC, they faulted the commission for what they called a failure to exercise its supervisory mandate over political parties, claiming that despite receiving more than 20 petitions regarding disputes and irregularities within DP, the commission has failed to issue definitive rulings.
They referenced a decision by Justice Allan Nshime in August 2025 directing party disputes back to the Electoral Commission for resolution, a hearing which was subsequently conducted in September 2025 with the commission promising to issue a ruling, but none has been communicated to date, according to disgruntled group.
They are now demanding urgent intervention by both the EC and the IG, warning that continued inaction risks deepening divisions within the party and further eroding public confidence in Mao’s leadership. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
