A section of National Unity Platform (NUP) leaders currently in parallel relations with the top leadership of their party has downplayed the possibility of quitting or forming a new political party.
The main opposition party is embroiled in a sharp controversy threatening its support base, following a demand by the top leadership for Nyendo-Mukungwe MP Mathias Mpuuga Nsamba to resign from the position of Parliamentary Commissioner over a contentious “service award” of 500 million shillings allocated to him after serving as the Leader of the Opposition.
NUP President Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu also suspended Mpuuga from the position of Party Deputy President for Buganda Region, accusing him of casting the party into public disrepute and corruption. Mpuuga has described these accusations as ridiculous.
Amid the growing internal strife, a section of leaders, including Members of Parliament, have rebelled against their party’s top leadership and allied with Mpuuga. They are organizing thanksgiving prayers for him in Masaka City on Friday.
Joseph Kasirye, the NUP Registrar for the greater Masaka region, while addressing the pre-event organizing meeting in Sembabule district, disputed claims of forming a breakaway from the party. He said their efforts are intended to restore sanity and make them a better alternative to the incumbent NRM.
Kasirye stated that NUP is currently tattered with a high level of intolerance and egocentric tendencies by a clique of leaders. He claimed the top leadership is preoccupied with promoting intrigue against others.
Kasirye said their group has not considered quitting NUP to join or form a new political formation, but they are reaching out to re-mobilize members and urge them to join efforts to realign the affairs of the party for the better.
Juliet Nakabuye Kakande, the Masaka City Woman Member of Parliament, cautioned opposition supporters against the excitement of forming or switching to political parties, arguing that they all face similar frustrations that retard the pursuit of political change in the country. She stated that it does not make sense to quit NUP at the moment, arguing that their energies can only pay off if they focus on reorganizing the party and aligning its leadership to serve the general good.
Michael Mulindwa Nakumusana, the Nyendo-Ssenyange division Chairperson, said they have set out to address the problems causing division within the opposition parties. He explained that their mobilization crusades are intended to reenergize their grassroots supporters so that they can stand out and task their leaders against divisive politics.
NUP Spokesperson and Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, Joel Ssenyonyi, said the top organ of the party has already pronounced its decision on the fate of Mathias Mpuuga, indicating that they are not about to relent under any form of pressure. According to him, the group mobilizing members outside the known structures of the party and programs are self-seekers who they cannot pay attention to.
Notably, internal contradictions are not novel to opposition political parties in Uganda. In the buildup and post-2016 general election period, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), which was the main opposition party at the time, faced a similar dilemma. The leadership failed to agree on the best approach to challenging President Museveni, as they were torn apart by two divergent factions—one believing in building and strengthening party structures from the grassroots, and the other believing in defiance and confrontation methods. These contradictions led to a split and eventually the creation of a new political party, the Alliance for National Transformation (ANT).
