Todwong woos Greater North-Kampala community to back NRM

_____________

National Resistance Movement (NRM) secretary general Richard Todwong has urged residents of the Kampala Metropolitan Area who hail from the Greater North to support President Yoweri Museveni and all NRM candidates at the ballot on Thursday, January 15, 2026.

Yellow dominated Lugogo Cricket Oval in Kampala on Monday, January 12, 2026, as hundreds turned up to listen to the NRM secretariat chief executive, who was accompanied by parliamentary party flag bearers from all Kampala divisions.

Despite an afternoon downpour, the crowd remained animated, dancing to pro-NRM campaign music and intermittently breaking into slogans.

“I have come here to ask you to vote for President Yoweri Museveni and also assure you that on January 15, 2026, he will win overwhelmingly. I have moved with President Museveni all over Uganda; today, I was supposed to travel with him to Kasese, but I asked him to allow me to meet you. If he wins, he has to win with our votes so that if we want anything from him tomorrow, it will be that your vote was part of the votes that brought him victory,” Todwong said.



He added, “The other reason why I am meeting you is to introduce you to the party flag bearers who are contesting and who are asking you to vote for them. For a long time, you people from the north were sidelined from many things. Where you live, where you stay, many things do not reach you, including Parish Development Model (PDM), Emyooga, all these things. I want to add value to you. I thought I should invite you and tell them that your vote will make them win, and if they win, they must not forget you.”

Ahead of the meeting with Todwong, members of the Greater North-Kampala community had on Sunday (January 11) met their leaders at Kyebando Kisalosalo in Kampala, where they outlined concerns requiring redress.

One of the community members, Wilfred Obedgiul, said many residents were failing to benefit from government programmes due to limited access and inadequate sensitisation.

He faulted elected local leaders for failing to return to their constituents to offer clear guidance on how they can benefit from government initiatives, which he said disadvantages many people.

“Most people, especially women, are hardworking and understand business, but many are vending mangoes in Kampala because they cannot access these programmes to expand their enterprises,” he said, calling on government to inject funds into community SACCOs.

Addressing the gathering, the Kumam cultural leader, Raphael Otaya, opened his remarks with a biblical passage from Romans 13:1-8, urging the community to uphold peace, unity and respect for leadership.

“Let us maintain peace before elections, during elections, and after elections. I am calling upon the strong men and women not to create anarchy in Uganda because it is dangerous for us, it may be dangerous also to you, and yet we need you alive. So, all Ugandans, let us maintain peace wherever we are. So that we can develop, we can achieve our aims, which each of us is looking at,” Otaya said.

He added, “Government gives us infrastructure for development. But an individual has to work to create wealth. Government is giving us what former speakers have said. There is PDM (Parish Development Model), Emyooga, there is Operation Wealth Creation and many others. But for us, especially you in Kampala are earning something, ensure that you save and ensure that you have shelter when you go back home.”

Catherine Akumu Mavengina, who went through unopposed as the Member of Parliament for older persons representing Northern Uganda, used the occasion to commend the NRM government for restoring peace, fostering unity and driving socio-economic development.

“Since the NRM government came into power in 1986, many positive changes have taken place under the leadership of President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni,” Akumu said, stressing that peace was essential for Uganda to achieve its development goals.

She added, “Without peace, there is nothing you can do. But with peace, there is always food, work, and opportunity.”

In his keynote address, retired Lt Gen. Emilio Mondo underscored the importance of security, describing it as the foundation upon which all development rests. He praised President Museveni, the security agencies and other actors for their role in maintaining peace.

However, he noted that some war-related challenges, including compensation for lost property, remain unresolved and called on government to address them.