By Kazibwe Jamil
Kampala, Uganda: In two swift and firm directives, H.E. President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, the National Chairman of the NRM, has ordered the arrest and prosecution of party election officials implicated in altering results during the recently concluded chaotic primaries.
This unprecedented move underscores the President’s intent to salvage party cohesion, which has been deeply fractured by the violent and fraudulent processes witnessed across the country.
As we have consistently argued, the NRM Electoral Commission (EC) was ill-prepared for the monumental task of managing primaries across Uganda’s 72,000 villages.
Despite having ample time and resources, the commission’s failures in both planning and execution have resulted in a credibility crisis now hanging over the party’s electoral processes.
Where Did the Rot Begin?
Recruitment and Training of Election Staff:- This was the first glaring failure. A quick evaluation reveals that most of the commission’s election staff were hastily recruited without proper vetting for competence, neutrality, or patriotism. Alarmingly, many were known affiliates of the warring factions within the NRM at district level.
It was clear from the onset that bias and incompetence would mar their work. Worse still, despite sufficient resources, there was no meaningful training conducted to equip these individuals with the basics of electoral management.
Failure to Rotate Electoral Staff;- Despite red flags raised by security intelligence and party insiders, the NRM EC failed to swap electoral staff to neutral polling areas. This oversight opened doors for collusion, compromise, and manipulation of results at local levels, exacerbating tensions and undermining transparency.
The ‘One Man Show’ Problem at the Top:- Ask any NRM member today to name more than one NRM EC Commissioner and very few can pass that test. This points directly to a failed leadership style where the Chairperson eclipsed the Commission. Instead of fostering teamwork among the seven commissioners, the Chairperson ran the commission as a personal fiefdom. This stifled institutional synergy and reduced others to mere spectators, leaving the commission vulnerable and disjointed as it undertook such a massive electoral responsibility.
A Rot from the Head?
With more damning revelations emerging from the countryside, the growing sentiment within party ranks is that the rot started from the top. The failures are not isolated to village-level errors but point to systemic flaws rooted in leadership failure at the commission’s helm.
President Museveni’s drastic actions are a signal to restore credibility, but the damage inflicted on the party’s reputation and cohesion will not be easily undone.
The writer is a political commentator and a devoted NRM Senior Cadre.
