Iganga, Uganda: National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Sentamu was on Friday forced to cancel his scheduled rally in Iganga after security blocked his intended route to Namungalwe, citing breach of agreed campaign guidelines.
Kyagulanyi, who had earlier addressed a successful rally in Mayuge, accused district security leaders led by the Resident District Commissioner of deliberately cutting him off from entering Iganga town.
“We have decided to postpone our campaign in Iganga. We hope to engage the Electoral Commission so they make it clear that I and the NUP are now allowed to campaign in Iganga Municipality while other candidates campaign there,” Kyagulanyi said in a statement via X, formerly Twitter.
According to NUP, the presidential candidate had preferred to first address supporters in Iganga Municipality before heading to Namungalwe in Kigulu North, but security forces sealed off all access routes into town.
However, police dismissed claims that Kyagulanyi was blocked, saying his team attempted to divert from the agreed campaign route. “On their way to Iganga, Candidate Sentamu and the group were advised to follow the agreed-upon route to Namungalwe grounds. However, they opted to take an alternative route where they encountered our cutoffs,” a police statement dated October 3, 2025, read in part.
Police further explained that upon encountering the barricades, Kyagulanyi and his entourage diverted to Jinja City and abandoned the Iganga rally. Authorities urged NUP to adhere to campaign guidelines to ensure peaceful and orderly elections.
Earlier in Mayuge, Kyagulanyi pledged to restore dignity for communities living along Uganda’s lakes and rivers by ordering security forces off the waters. “The first executive order will call off the army from the lake. We shall install a committee to investigate acts of lawlessness against Ugandans living on the waters,” he said, adding that those who have oppressed fishing communities must apologize.
He also criticized the current sugarcane law, saying it benefits millers at the expense of growers, and promised to prioritize electricity, health services, and infrastructure in Busoga. Kyagulanyi rallied the people of Mayuge to back his presidential bid, saying Busoga’s resources and history deserved to translate into prosperity for its people.
On the ongoing arts teachers’ strike, Kyagulanyi blamed the government for neglecting education and pledged reforms. “Children have now spent three weeks minus schooling and the government is watching. We pledge to improve the education sector and avoid teenage pregnancies which may occur when girl children are not in school. My government will also adopt a policy of feeding children in schools,” he said.
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