Haji Ssemakula said that though by the time the current district party chairperson, Haji Ssebaggala came into office, NRM was in position of three out of the four parliamentary positions in the district, currently all the four are in the hands of the opposition.
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As the primary party elections for the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) draw close, campaigns have turned sour, beginning with the top party office in Mukono district where accusations, counter-accusations and denials are top on the campaigners’ agenda.
One of the aspirants for the district chairmanship, Haji Haruna Ssemakula is accusing his opponent for allegedly funding a smear campaign calculated at denting his personality and portraying him before voters as being unfit for the position.
Haji Ssemakula who is the NRM vice chairman for Mukono district, is running against his boss, the district party chairman, Haji Twahir Ssebaggala who has been in the helm for fifteen years.
The two celebrated businessmen in the district are going through a tough competition whose results, according to analysts, are at the moment very difficult to predict.
The latest from Ssemakula’s camp is that Ssebaggala is bankrolling a smear campaign by fueling what they call baseless rumours that the former on Thursday, May 1, 2025 drew a pistol at one Hussein Musambi, a resident of Kabimbiri cell in Kasawo Town Council who was suspected to have been planted into the camp to spy on their campaign strategy, allegations that Haji Ssebaggala vehemently denied as a concoction.
It was on Friday morning reported that the incident took place in the home of the NRM chairperson for Kasawo cell in Kasawo Town Council, Andrew Kaddu Kabugo, where Musambi allegedly infiltrated a campaign strategy meeting for Haji Ssemakula.
Musambi alleged that when he resisted attempts to throw him out of the meeting, Haji Ssemakula drew a pistol, pointed it at him and ordered him to vacate. However, Ssemakula says those are baseless allegations which are aimed at tainting his name.
Haji Ssemakula and Hajji Ssebaggala had just left Namuganga playground, in Seeta-Namuganga sub-county, the venue for the belated Women’s Day celebrations, where each laid bare his programme for winning the elections for the district NRM party chairmanship.
In an interview on Friday, the irate Ssemakula vowed to take legal action against whoever will be found to be behind what he called acts intended to taint him ahead of the elections.
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He said he has all along been employing peaceful tactics of convincing NRM supporters to rally behind him, and went as far as providing motorcycles for the 18 party sub-county chairpersons in the district all in the name of striving to change leadership which he avers, has led to degeneration of the party status in the district.
Haji Ssemakula said that though by the time the current district party chairperson, Haji Ssebaggala came into office, NRM was in position of three out of the four parliamentary positions in the district, currently all the four are in the hands of the opposition.
“As party supporters, we agreed to let Haji Ssebaggala stay in leadership for so long but on the realisation that the opposition is gradually taking an upper hand over us as far as popularity and support are concerned, I offered myself to oust him and provide more effective leadership”, he said.
Dwelling on this point, Haji Semakula said that before entry of Haji Ssebaggala as top party leader, the NRM enjoyed an 85% representation in parliament, with then DP’s (now NUP’s) Betty Nambooze as the only opponent, but that currently, there is no single NRM MP, and attributed this to Ssebaggala’s poor mobilisation tactics.
According to Andrew Kaddu the host of Haji Ssemakula’s meeting after the Namuganga women’s day celebrations, the author of the gun-story acted very unprofessionally by filing a report without bothering to cross check with the team on the ground to ascertain authenticity of his facts.
Another supporter Ssalongo Godfrey Kimmula castigated proponents of employing youths to sow seeds of discord, reasoning that this is fraught with giving the opposition bargaining power for attacking the NRM.
Contacted for comment on phone, Haji Ssebaggala laughed off the matter, saying this is one of the known ploys by weak politicians, and added that he is not bothered.
Haji Ssebaggala has refrained from commenting further on the matter, but pressed hard, saying his opponent is seeking to divert him (Ssebaggala) and his supporters from real issues.
Pressed harder to comment, Haji Ssebaggala said, “I am not in position to confirm or deny whether my deputy drew a gun at someone, but my concern is to tell supporters what our strategies for strengthening the party are; if it is true he drew a gun, the law may take its course but since I was not at the venue, I am not party to that,”, Haji Ssebaggala said before hanging up.
The Minister for Works and Transport Gen. Edward Katumba Wamala who was the chief guest, had advised all politicians seeking election in both the primaries and main elections next year, to desist from dirty politics characterized by name calling, personality tarnishing and character assassination, and instead concentrating on emphasizing their manifestos for the electorate to decide.
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