Controversy surrounds Bobi Wine's party

The founding members of NURP have also lodged a complaint to the Electoral Commission (EC) under Sections 4 and 21 of the Political Parties and Organisations Act, 2005, punching holes into what they described as the "unlawful" and "illegal" transactions that underpinned Bobi Wine's takeover of their party. 

Yesterday, the EC chairperson, Justice Simon Byabakama, confirmed receiving the petition. 

"We have received a petition from some people belonging to the original party challenging the method in which Kyagulanyi became the leader. They say they were not consulted as members of the party," Byabakama told journalists.  

There has also been controversy over the NUP party colours. The EC had earlier raised a query on NUP's use of the red colour, but did not get a response from NUP. "We have never gazetted NUP party colours. If they are operating under the law, why did they announce the colour before they were gazetted?" Byabakama asked.

Saturday Vision has learnt that the complaints against Bobi Wine were lodged before the EC by NURP secretary general Lillian Odinga and the publicity secretary, Edward Seremba. 

Sources recently told Saturday Vision that Bobi Wine allegedly bought NUP, a registered political party from Nkonge Kibalama at sh300m. 

There are reports that the split between NUP and NURP founders could be a result of the sh300m that was allegedly paid to acquire the party.  

Kibalama, one of the founders, says he has no problem with Bobi Wine or his People Power team taking charge of the party positions and structures. 

"I am happy to work with Kyagulanyi," he said, adding that it was their understanding that Bobi Wine's team takes charge of all positions.

Kibalama, a former Uganda People's Congress (UPC) stalwart and President Milton Obote escort, also emphasised that the marriage of his party with People Power was endorsed by NURP's delegates' conference on July 14. 

However, some insiders argue that by relegating the founders to second fiddle, especially when it came to positions under the new NUP structure, the battle lines were drawn. 

The composition of Bobi Wine's NUP executive committee includes himself as president-general of the party, Aisha Kabanda (deputy secretary-general), Davis Lewis Rubongoya (secretary-general), Flavia Kalule Nabagabe (secretary women affairs) and Fred Nyanzi, who is the secretary for mobilisation. 

"I strongly suspect that by not including some of the founders into his executive, Bobi Wine opened leeway for a political contest with NURP members. The other unresolved issue is how they shared the money; if at all Bobi Wine paid it to Kibalama, as it is alleged," a People Power politician, who participated in the negotiations that led to the metamorphosis of NURP into NUP, told Saturday Vision.

In his response to the emerging controversy surrounding his party, Bobi Wine questioned the timing of the complaint by NURP members, saying the party has existed since 2004 without much political activity. 

"This is a party which has existed for all these years and nobody has ever raised any complaint. The changes which have been made in recent months have all been done in full compliance with all provisions of the party constitution and other laws. They have been approved and gazetted by the EC," he said. 

In an August 3 letter, James Byamukama, the advocate for the petitioners, said their complaints against Bobi Wine rotate around three resolutions — change of the name from NURP to NUP, the nomination of Bobi Wine as the party flag-bearer in December 2017 before the delegates' conference on July 14, 2020, where the People Power pressure group kingpin was elected as NUP party president. 

"The extraordinary delegates' conference allegedly held on July 14, 2020, and attended by only 51 unverified members out of a membership of 400 delegates, which rubberstamped Kyagulanyi as the new party president and his associates as party office bearers unopposed without conducting a proper election, is violation of the party constitution. It also violates provisions in the national Constitution on internal democracy of political parties," Byamukama said. 

The other complaint raised by founders of NURP is the "deliberate alteration of the list of founder members/ subscribers of the party to aid and abet the aforesaid schemes." Byamukama has also challenged Bobi Wine to table records of the activities surrounding his acquisition of the party.