Prime
Todwong asks NRM leaders in Sironko to reconcile
The ruling National Resistance party Secretary General, Mr Richard Todwong
The ruling National Resistance party Secretary General, Mr Richard Todwong, has asked warring National Resistance Movement (NRM) leaders in Sironko District to reconcile and work together to implement government programmes.
Mr Todwong, who made the remarks during a dialogue meeting at the district headquarters at the weekend, said disagreements among the top NRM leaders cost the party during the 2021 General Election.
“Disorganised majority can become a minority. For instance Sironko is NRM but it is now being led by Opposition leaders. To change this, you need to reconcile and work together as NRM leaders,” Mr Todwong said.
The NRM party lost a number of seats to the Opposition. These include the Bududari East, Budadiri West, and Woman MP seat.
The Opposition also managed to take the district chairperson seat after the FDC candidate, Mr David Livingston Giruli, trounced the NRM flag bearer, Mr Alex Nabende, with a difference of 10,454.
“It is painful to be under an Opposition leader but this came because we were disorganised,” he said, adding that as NRM secretariat, they will hold another meeting of NRM leaders to ensure that they reconcile.
The fall-out of the NRM leaders in the district emanated from the disputed NRM primary elections. The losers refused to concede defeat alleging that the elections were marred by fraud, bribery and malpractice.
Sanity and unity
The Sironko District NRM chairperson, Mr Suleiman Lumolo, said he requested President Museveni and Mr Todwong to intervene in the issues affecting the party so that sanity and unity is restored.
“We need to unite and cause development as Sironko District and also as Bugisu at large. That is my interest,” Mr Lumolo said.
Mr Lumolo also asked government to expedite the construction of Namagumba, Budadiri, and Nalugugu circular road.
“The construction of this road will boost trade because Sironko is one of the leading producers of agro products such as coffee, bananas, tomatoes, cabbage, onion among other food stuffs,” he said.
Mr Lumolo said due to the bad state of the road, traders incur huge costs to transport such food stuffs to South Sudan and Northern Uganda.
Mr Alex Nabende, the former aspirant for the Sironko District chairperson seat, urged the party to come up with a mechanism to manage the aftermath of NRM primaries.
“The candidates who lose in the primary elections should be barred from contesting because the Opposition takes advantage of such gaps to beat us in elections,” Mr Nabende said.
