Drama as MPs Kasibante, Ssajjalyabeene miss NUP ticket

Kampala, Uganda |  THE INDEPENDENT |   Members of parliament, Moses Kasibante of Lubaga North and Emmanuel Ssempala Kigozi Ssajjalyabeene of Makindye Ssaabagabo have been denied the flag of the National Unity Platform. 

In a residual list released this afternoon by the Executive Board of the party that was put in place to choose parliamentary flagbearers in sticky constituencies, Kasibante has been replaced by Abubaker Kawalya, the current Kampala Capital City speaker while Ssajjalyabeene has been replaced with David Sserukenya. 

Kasibante who has been an independent MP for 10 years, but leaning to the Democratic Party and Ssajjalyabeene together with nine other MPs crossed from the Democratic Party to NUP in August over what they called irreconcilable differences with their former party President Norbert Mao.

Unlike the two, the other nine incumbents were all selected to hold the party’s flag in the coming elections. Also on the list of those selected today is Allan Ssewanyana, the incumbent MP for Makindye West, who was in hot competition for the flag with two other NUP stalwarts, David Musiri Bwogi and Yasin Ntege.

Ssegirinya Muhammad, the KCCA councillor has also been selected as the party flag bearer for Kawempe North against former Kampala Deputy Lord Mayor, Sulaiman Sserwadda Kidandala.

Journalist Kazibwe Bashir Mbaziira has also been selected as NUP flag bearer for Kawempe north. He has been in a tight competition for the race with People Power early recruit Dr Roy Ssembogga, a Makerere University former guild president.   

Early this week, the election management committee of NUP headed by Mercy Walukamba released parliamentary flag bearers for Buganda and Eastern Uganda. However, the list had some missing names especially for constituencies that were hotly contested. 

Some of those were not selected and spoke to URN decried the manner in which the decision on who to give the ticket to had been reached. They vowed to stand as independents if the party doesn’t give them convincing reasons why they were dropped. Today, 15 flag bearers for constituencies in Buganda have been named. Below is the full list of those selected

Bujumba County-Fred Kintu Lwanga Sempala 

Lubaga North- Abubaker Kawalya

Kawempe South- Kazibwe Bashir Mbaziira

Kawemepe North- Muhammad Ssegirinya

Ntwetwe County- Edward Mande

Bukoto West- Kamanzi Francis 

Bukoto South- Kagabo Twaha Muzeyi

Masaka district woman- Nakiyimba Harriet

Buweeekula North- Baleke Kayiira Peter

Kasambya County- Ssimbwa Bruhan

Rakai district woman- Nalubega Grace

Lwemiyaga County-Ziriddamu Paul

Busiro South-Matovu Charles 

Makindye Ssabagabo-Serukenya David

********

URN