We have seen elections come and go. But the one we saw in Kawempe was unprecedented-President Kyagulanyi

Yesterday, March 17, 2025, the National Unity Platform held a press conference to address the nation following the by-election in Kawempe North. During this event, we officially welcomed the newly elected Member of Parliament, Hon. Nalukoola Erias Luyimbazi, and listened to testimonies from victims of electoral violence and state brutality.

The party leader, President Kyagulanyi Ssentamu Robert, shared his remarks highlighting the resilience of the people, the injustices they endured, and the continued struggle for democracy in Uganda.

Below is his full speech:

Good afternoon, comrades, members of the press, and fellow Ugandans. Allow me to start by congratulating the brave men and women of Kawempe North who stood firm in the face of dictator Museveni’s thugs and guns and said, NOT TODAY! Just like the late Ssegirinya, you fought hard and proved that indeed, the power of the people is stronger than the people in power!

These past 40 years, we have seen elections come and go. But the one we saw in Kawempe last Thursday was unprecedented. We saw an election where almost all media houses recalled their staff from the field a few hours after voting had started, just to keep them safe from those who claimed they were securing the election.

We saw an election where the main candidate’s nomination papers were seized by security operatives just hours before nomination; his supporters and mobilizers were beaten and arrested; and his communication devices were seized just hours before voting. Several of our comrades were beaten and imprisoned just for supporting our candidate. Many others are in the hospital fighting for their lives.

I truly congratulate you, Counsel Nalukoola, for beating the seemingly impossible odds to sit amongst us here today as a Member of Parliament-elect.

You were not declared the winner because the regime wanted to. You were declared the winner because the elaborate measures the people of Kawempe North took to protect their vote left the regime with no other alternative.

Having failed to suppress the will of the people of Kawempe North, it is unsurprising how the regime has reacted to the results of the election.

Dictator Museveni has since released a statement seeking to undermine the legitimacy of our victory and deflect blame for the criminality he unleashed on citizens in Kawempe.

In the statement, he defends the heavy deployment of the UPDF and JATT as necessary to prevent anarchy. He thinks we have forgotten that it is these very forces that perpetrated the violence and disorder we witnessed. They beat up voters, battered journalists, and broke their cameras. This was not about maintaining order; it was about suppressing the will of the people.

He accuses us of ballot stuffing, voter intimidation, and results tampering. But there is abundant video evidence showing his ministers, accompanied by masked goons protected by gunmen, engaging in this criminality.

The destruction of ballot boxes in Kazo-Angola and other areas was not the work of the opposition—it was orchestrated by regime operatives to create a pretext for rejecting the otherwise legitimate results from an election they simply couldn’t win! He characterizes the horrific attacks on journalists as “mistakes,” which is as dismissive as it is insulting. This is the same man who claims to have restored press freedom.

In summary, Museveni’s statement is just another desperate attempt to rewrite history and distort the truth. Besides being an insult to the intelligence of Ugandans, the statement confirms that the man lost touch with reality a long, long time ago. We must help him out of his misery.

Like we have repeatedly said, we trust in you, Counsel Nalukoola, and your ability to execute the duties of a Member of Parliament. The people of Kawempe North have entrusted you with their mandate. They have high hopes in you. Please don’t disappoint them. DO NOT sell them off to the LOWEST bidder like other comrades we previously entrusted with positions did.

PICTORIAL????