FDC condemns violence in Kawempe byelection, demands justice

KAMPALA - The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) has condemned the violence that marred the Kawempe North by-election and is demanding compensation for the victims, including journalists.

The opposition party, headquartered in Najjanankumbi, Kampala, argued that the Electoral Commission (EC) should have called off the election upon realising the extent of the violence.

On Friday, March 14, 2025, the Electoral Commission declared National Unity Platform (NUP) candidate, Erias Luyimbazi Nalukoola, the winner of the by-election. 

While FDC president Patrick Oboi Amuriat congratulated Nalukoola, he insisted that all those injured during the election violence must be compensated.

"We cannot leave this go uncompensated when the injured are nursing wounds. We call for urgent responses from those responsible," Amuriat said.

The hotly contested seat fell vacant on January 9, 2025, following the death of Muhammad Ssegirinya, also a NUP member. Nalukoola secured 17,764 votes, while his closest competitor, National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate Faridah Nambi, garnered 8,593 votes.

Other candidates received votes as follows: Sadat Mukiibi of FDC got 239 votes, Henry Kasacca Mubiru of the Democratic Party (DP) received 100, Ismail Musiitwa of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) got 39, Muhammed Lusswa Luwemba secured 240, Hanifah Karadi Murewa had 381, Muhamood Mutazindwa received 186, Moses Nsereko got 32, and Stanley Edward Maitum Engena had 22.

The results were declared on Friday last week by Henry Makabayi, the Kawempe Returning Officer, at Makerere University School of Public Health. Makabayi also reported that results from 15 polling stations were not returned due to the destruction of polling stations in Kazo Angola.

Addressing journalists at their party headquarters in Najjanankumbi, FDC president Patrick Oboi Amuriat strongly condemned the violence, describing it as “nonsense.”

He claimed that harassment and violence had marred the nomination process of the FDC candidate, asserting that the party had not entered the by-election to fight a war but had hoped for a departure from the past patterns of electoral violence and vote rigging.

Amuriat warned that the violence witnessed during the Kawempe North byelection, happening at the start of the next election cycle, paints a grim picture of Uganda’s democracy and raises concerns about the possibility of a free, fair, and credible 2026 general election.

“We in the FDC strongly condemn the brutal actions of the joint security forces, comprising police, military, and JATT operatives during the nomination and voting of the Kawempe North byelection. These repeated actions undermine the very democracy the NRA went to the bush to fight for,” Amuriat said.

Meanwhile, the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) has also rejected the election results. 

During a meeting chaired by President Yoweri Museveni, the NRM Central Executive Committee (CEC) convened on Friday, March 14, and resolved to legally challenge the outcome in court. 

The party insists that a court petition is necessary to ensure fairness prevails in the electoral process.