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HomeNationalWill NRM seize Kasese Woman MP seat from the Opposition?

Will NRM seize Kasese Woman MP seat from the Opposition?

For close to two decades, residents of Kasese District have been voting Opposition leaders from Members of Parliament to lower local councils. 
For instance, in the 2016 General Election, the Opposition swept all six parliamentary seats in the district. The seats included Kasese Woman MP, Kasese Municipality, Busongora North, Busongora South, Bukonzo East and Bukonzo West. All the seats are currently by MPs belonging to the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC).
The district chairperson seat is also currently occupied by Mr Geoffrey Sibendire Bigogo, a member of FDC. FDC also obtained the highest number of councillors and chairperson at division and sub-county levels, winning 17 seats of the 29 sub-counties.

Observers say NRM lost to the Opposition in the district because of failure to resolve land and cultural conflicts in the area as well as the ruling party’s own internal divisions.
For instance in 2016, NRM did not consolidate its support in Bukonzo West where its vote was divided between Dr Crispus Kiyonga and Mr Justus Sausi Capson creating an easy sail through for FDC.
Ms Rehema Muhindo, who was defeated by Ms Winnie Kiiza twice in the race for the district woman MP in 2011 and 2012 by-elections, says the NRM woes in 2016 were caused by a poor mobilisation strategy.

And going by the current preparations for the 2021 General Election, there is no evidence that NRM is ready to wrestle the district from the Opposition. This is based on the divisions that were exhibited during the recently concluded NRM primaries.
One such race is for the district woman MP. The woman MP seat was held by NRM’s Loyce Biira Bwambale between 1989 and 2006 before she joined the Rwenzururu Kingdom as deputy prime minister.

Past races
Ms Bwambale was in 2006 defeated by Ms Kiiza. In 2011, Ms Kiiza beat Ms Rehema Muhindo (NRM) both in the General Election and in the subsequent by-election in 2012. The first vote margin was more than 6,000 votes while in the second round the margin was about 4,000.
In 2016, Ms Kiiza beat Jane Asiimwe Muhindo (NRM and now RDC Bunyangabu District) to tighten her strong grip on the seat.

Ms Kiiza, however, recently announced she will not run for the seat come 2021.
NRM has now fielded Ms Maryline Kabugho Kigotha, who won the recently concluded party primaries with 40,791 votes. She defeated Ms Sarah Ithungu Baleke who scored 40,465 votes.

However, Ms Ithungu has since disputed the results, citing irregularities and voter bribery. She has petitioned the NRM electoral body and has promised to contest as an independent if her matter is not addressed.
Ms Kigotha is joined by three other women; one from FDC, another from the National Unity Platform (NUP) and another as an independent.
Ms Florence Kabugho is representing FDC while Ms Fatuma Katembo is for NUP. Ms Mariam Mbambu Kabagire also subscribes to NUP but has promised to contest as an independent. Advertisement

Ms Kabugho promises to support girl-child education, promote unity among all ethnic groups in the district and restablish Obusinga Bwa Rwenzururu through dialogue.
“I want to support women, widows, orphans and youth groups, promotion of technical skills and sports and promotion of modern agriculture and environmental protection,” she says.
Ms Kigotha has promised to advocate for improved maternal health and education of the girl-child.
She also pledges to organise women into groups and lobby for their start-up capital from government.
Ms Kabugho is a journalist and has worked on various radio stations, including Radio Uganda, Grace Radio and Rwenzori Messiah radio.

About candidates
Ms Kabagire holds a Diploma in Beauty Therapy from Nairobi in Kenya. She owns Mariam Beauty Point on Majestic Plaza in Kampala and others in Dubai.
Ms Katembo, on the other hand, holds a Degree of Laws from Islamic University in Uganda. 
Ms Kabugho wants to support young women and encourage them to participate in decision making. 
“Views of young women have not been well listened to. I want to be their voice, empower them set up various groups and help them get hands on skills such as fashion and design/tailoring, among others, which will help them generate income,” she says.

Ms Katembo promises to lobby for Kasese city status and fight trafficking of young women to the Middle East.
“Most young girls are trafficked to the Middle East in the name of promising them lucrative jobs and they end up being slaves and sex workers. This is a serious and a grave violation of human rights,” she says.
Ms Kabugho is popular because of her radio show titled ‘Listeners’ Messiah Radio in Kasese. She is also a popular master of ceremonies, endearing her to people from all walks of life.

Ms Kigotha comes from Kisinga in Bukonzo East, which is an FDC stronghold.
She attended Nsenyi Primary School, Kasese High School, Naalya Secondary School and later Makerere University.  Ms Kigotha holds a degree in Development Studies.
She worked in the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and Parliament as a senior policy analyst. She also worked in State House on the youth desk.

 Election issues
The factors that have influenced past elections in Kasese District include cultural and ethnic conflicts in Rwenzori Sub-region and land wrangles.
And these factors have not gone away ahead of the 2021 elections. For instance, the issue of Rwenzururu Kingdom has not been resolved, with the Omusinga (king), Charles Wesley Mumbere, still not allowed to freely access the kingdom nearly four years after the palace attack.

He was arrested on November 27, 2016 during a raid on his Buhikira palace in Kasese Town. The Omusinga together with more than 200 others have been battling charges of treason, terrorism and murder, among others.
Tension between the Basongora and the Bakonzo over land have persisted in the area and have often resulted in  clashes leading to loss of lives and destruction of property.

However, some NRM cadres say they are strategising to use the recent internal wars within FDC to reclaim all the six MP positions and that of district chairperson. FDC, which has on three previous occasions supported Dr Kizza Besigye to challenge Mr Museveni, has during this term split into two, leading to the birth of the Alliance for National Transformation (ANT) led by the party’s former leader, Maj Gen Mugisha Muntu.
Gen Muntu is working with a number of FDC leaders, including Ms Kiiza.

 Besides, President Museveni’s younger brother and national coordinator for Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), Gen Salim Saleh, has been on a mission in Rwenzori Sub-region, softening the hearts of both the leaders and the population towards the regime, with both cash and development projects dangled at them.

KEY ELECTION ISSUES
The factors that have influenced past elections in Kasese District include cultural and ethnic conflicts in Rwenzori Sub-region and land wrangles.
And these factors have not gone away ahead of the 2021 elections. For instance, the issue of Rwenzururu Kingdom has not been resolved, with the Omusinga (king), Charles Wesley Mumbere, still not allowed to freely access the kingdom nearly four years after the palace attack.

In 2011, Ms Winnie Kiiza polled 92,108 votes, beating Ms  Rehema Muhindo who got 90,624 votes. In 2016, Ms Kiiza polled 123,170 votes to beat NRM’s Jane Asiimwe Muhindo who garnered 70,564 votes; a difference of 52,606 votes.


What voters say  

 Mate Magwara, NRM supporter:
«The woman MP seat is the most competitive and I pray that the NRM party Electoral commission handles the petition by Ms Baleke carefully so as to maintain the momentum that is already gained on the ground. We have a great opportunity as NRM this time because we have potential candidates.»

Peter Masereka, FDC:

«It is time now to choose the best candidate in order to defeat the NRM and retain the seat we (FDC) have been holding for three consecutive terms. Despite Ms Kiiza bowing out, our replacement is good and able; she has worked for the media for long in Kasese and this is a great advantage for her as she is well known by all the people in the district.»

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