Will Gabula take Iganga LC5 chairperson seat again?
Gabula, who is barely three-feet tall, has become used to the way his constituents use pseudonyms in apparent reference to his lack of standard height. Little wonder that he often comments; “Who am I, short as I am; a little person of Uganda, to become a district chairperson?”
Ezera Gabula, the incumbent Iganga district LC5 chairperson, interacting with voters during a door-to-door vote hunting in Bulubandi village, Iganga district. (Photo by George Bita)
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In the wee hours of January 21, 2021, people at the Electoral Commission tally centre in Iganga municipality were in shock as ‘a little person’ Ezera Gabula (NRM) almost walked under tables to pick up his official results as winner of the district LC5 chairperson seat.
After getting the document from then district returning officer Mercy Ataho, Gabula knelt in full glare of pressmen cameras, to thank God and voters for having granted him victory.
Five years later as the fight for the same seat becomes a clear contest between Gabula and National Unity Platform (NUP)’s Shabiru Kalulu Isabirye, the question is will Gabula get his much-cherished second term?
Gabula first trounced Iganga district NRM chairperson Abubaker Walubi to get the party flag in hotly contested primaries where he garnered 50,649 votes, while Walubi got 22,308. (Photo by George Bita)
Gabula, who is barely three-feet tall, has become used to the way his constituents use pseudonyms in apparent reference to his lack of standard height. Little wonder that he often comments; “Who am I, short as I am; a little person of Uganda, to become a district chairperson?”
Gabula first trounced Iganga district NRM chairperson Abubaker Walubi to get the party flag in hotly contested primaries where he garnered 50, 649 votes, while Walubi got 22, 308.
Gabula reminds voters that he is an experienced politician who knows the needs of his constituents so well.
“I have served Iganga since 1995. First as councillor representing Nambale sub-county for three terms, then as district vice chairman from 2011 and now chairman,” he narrates.
Contributions cited
Sarah Nazziwa, a voter from Bulubandi suburb of Iganga municipality, cites construction of communal water source sites as one of the achievements made by Gabula in recent years.
“In partnership with the Nile International Humanitarian organisation, he sunk boreholes both in Iganga and Bugweri neighbourhoods. The borehole used by Bulubandi locals whenever there is water shortage in town was lobbied for by the Iganga LC5 chairman,” Nazziwa reveals.
Gabula says a private members’ motion he moved during a council session led to resurfacing of the roadway at Nawaningi swampy stretch in 2015.
“We also had other sections like Igamba-Kasolo and Nawansinge-Buligo worked on. This was possible with the oversight role I played as district secretary for works,” he notes.
He assures voters that as per his pledge during the 2021 race, he ensured that he fast-tracked Busoga University takeover by government and the institution is due to reopen after refurbishment this year.
“We promised to split up big constituencies to have more administrative units. Already Namungalwe has become operational as a fully –fledged town council thereby creating more jobs for the common man,” Gabula assured.
Opposition plan
Isabirye, on his part describes Gabula’s choice for Iganga as a mistake saying Iganga needs a person who can deliver it from the poor service delivery rife in the local government.
“The entire system is corrupt with jobs up for sale whenever an advert comes up about employment opportunities. We educate our children paying a lot in school fees and then have to bribe in order to be employed,” Isabirye claimed.
He argued that the only way the residents of Iganga can be liberated from this misery is through use of the protest vote on January 15 to throw Gabula out.