By Mulengera ReportersThe NUP vibe and swag is evidently beginning to become demoralized following the humiliation the party suffered on Friday in Ssembabule district where several ruling party cadres went through unopposed. Ssembabule is an integral part of Greater Masaka where Mathias Mpuuga’s DF is supposed to be strongest.
This same Ssembabule is home to Nina Rose who foot soldiers are counting on to defeat NRM’s Pastor Mary Begumisa and become the new area Woman MP.
At the district Electoral Commission offices, the elderly Patrick Nkalubo of NRM was on Friday declared the new Ssembabule LC5 Chairman after Mr. Chris Jjumba who NUP was fronting failed to raise the required signatures to be nominated. He also didn’t have money for nomination!
Equally rejected by Ssembabule voters were the 12 foot soldiers NUP had fronted to run for district councillor positions.
This simply means that before even campaigning starts, the NRM has already won the Seat of Ssembabule district Chairman plus 12 district councillor positions.
Nkalubo, who has been Chairman for the district since 2016, is bouncing back. He will be Chairman for another 5 years (2026-2031) without having to campaign anywhere.
On his LC5 district council, Nkalubo already has 12 councillors from his NRM party and these won’t have to compete or campaign against anyone at all since NUP, which is supposed to be the strongest party in Buganda, has been found wanting in Ssembabule and unable to raise enough candidates yet they are prepared to tell the world how Gen Museveni (whose NRM ks everywhere) has once again rigged their victory.
The foot soldiers NUP had fronted for the 12 councillor positions failed to raise nomination fees and the required number of signatures yet this is a district Kavule is convinced that their Nina Rose is going to win.
The Kavule-based party’s failure to front a candidates for LC5 and to front councillors in 12 positions has greatly demoralized the party’s supporters and foot soldiers in Ssembabule and generally in other parts of Greater Masaka.
Some analysts believe that NUP’s failure to front candidates in a district like Ssembabule where they have one MP (Gorette Namuga) out of 5 MP slots is indicative of the vacuum the departure of the DF big man Mathias Mpuuga has created.
In 2021, it was Mpuuga who drove to different parts of Buganda and found candidates, many of whom ended up winning. Mpuuga was leveraging the vast network he built during his years under Nkoba Za Mbogo.
Knowledgeable Masaka-based pundits say that even Namuga will need divine intervention to retain her Mawogola South MP Seat in Ssembabule. It’s also true that Mathias Mpuuga’s DF has managed to woo many good cadres from NUP including the outgoing Masaka district LC5 Chairman who is seeking reelection on their ticket.
