Pallisa, Uganda: Agule County politician Herbert Okello, who trailed fourth in the recently concluded NRM primaries, has declared his intention to contest as an independent candidate, citing what he described as open manipulation of the party election results in Pallisa District.
Okello picked his nomination forms on Monday, accusing Pallisa NRM election officials of malice after results from his stronghold villages were allegedly disqualified.
“I hate people whom we pay through our subscription to arrogantly manipulate elections. You take a bribe of UGX 20 million to make others lose. This is just once in five years and it is bad for election officials to beg in NRM attire. There will be judgment for all in heaven,” Okello charged.
The aspirant insisted that the NRM primaries had robbed him of victory but stressed that the fairness of the National Electoral Commission (NEC), chaired by Justice Simon Byabakama, gives him confidence to “bounce back” in the general election.
Community members in Agule described Okello as a candidate with a “caring heart,” citing his social impact projects. Mr. Okolong Simon from Akisim Sub County praised him for supporting students in tertiary institutions and extending solar-powered security lights to all trading centres.
At Opadoi Trading Centre, businesswoman Kevin Adiye said residents consider Okello a “saviour” for curbing thefts that once forced traders to pay police UGX 150,000 to hire sniffer dogs. Similarly, Anna Akia of Okisiran Village credited him for restoring safety in trading hubs.
Okello’s supporters, led by Idik Ediya from Agule Sub County, pledged to guard the vote this time, accusing NRM election officials of allowing “open negotiations” and altering vote tallies in the primaries.
Martin Olupot, another supporter, welcomed Okello’s decision to go independent, arguing that the national electoral commission provides channels of redress and appeal unlike party structures that, he said, failed to convince voters of a fair outcome.
If you would like your article/opinion to be published on Uganda’s most authoritative news platform, send your submission on: [email protected]. You can also follow DailyExpress on WhatsApp and on Twitter (X) for realtime updates.
