Obongi, Uganda: Opposition parliamentary and Woman MP candidates in Obongi District have accused Resident District Commissioner Samuel Mpibaza Hashaka of orchestrating intimidation and laying ground for violence ahead of the January 15, 2026 presidential and parliamentary elections.
The Obongi County parliamentary candidate on the Forum for Democratic Change ticket and Independent Woman MP contender Joyo Harriet made the accusations during a tense press briefing at Obongi Central Police Station on Monday, January 12.
The candidates faulted the RDC over the arrest of nine supporters of Joyo, currently detained at Obongi CPS, accusing him of ordering the arrests on what they described as flimsy grounds linked to alleged disruption of a campaign rally for incumbent Woman MP Maneno Zumura in Andra village, Palorinya Sub-county.
Joyo said the arrests were calculated to demoralise her supporters in the final stretch of campaigning, drawing parallels to what she described as similar tactics used during the ruling party primaries that led to her earlier defeat.
“My camp will face Mr Mpibaza Hashaka as an individual, not as an RDC, because his actions are not synonymous with his job description,” Joyo said. “He wants to plant seeds of discord and violence. When Obongi burns, he will not bear the consequences; he will simply return to Western Uganda.”
She vowed to pursue the release of her detained supporters, accusing security of attempting to derail her campaign. “They delayed our destiny during the primaries, but they cannot take away our destiny. Victory is looming,” she said.
Joyo further accused the RDC of spreading misinformation that she had brought opposition figure Bobi Wine to Obongi and that she was working with opposition parties, which she dismissed as false. She argued that all political parties are constitutionally recognised and insisted that voters must be allowed to freely choose their leaders.
Obongi County parliamentary aspirant Hassan Fungaro alleged that the arrests were part of a wider plan involving district chairman Buga Abibu Khemis, Obongi County MP Bhoka George, Woman MP Maneno Zumura and the RDC to provoke violence and justify the deployment of the army.
He claimed the strategy was intended to intimidate opposition supporters and create grounds for the deployment of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces as a coercive force during the elections.
“The RDC has openly said that if the army does not come in to support flag bearers, they will lose elections,” Fungaro said. “Obongi is calm, but we must remain alert and respect their terms until elections are over.”
In response, RDC Samuel Mpibaza Hashaka dismissed the allegations, insisting he neither ordered nor carried out the arrests. He said the nine suspects were arrested by police on allegations of disrupting the campaign rally of Maneno Zumura, who had been officially scheduled to campaign in Palorinya Sub-county.
Mpibaza alleged the suspects had been mobilised by a civil servant, supplied with alcohol and instructed to storm the rally in Andra village, prompting security intervention. “The RDC does not arrest suspects. Police acted after being alerted,” he said.
He accused opposition candidates of a history of inciting violence during election periods, warning that security would deal firmly with anyone attempting to cause chaos. “Anyone who attempts to cause confusion will swallow the bitter pill. Security is prepared,” he said.
Mpibaza further revealed that district leaders had requested the deployment of UPDF as a standby force following a recent security meeting in Gulu City chaired by Felix Busizoori, commander of the 4th Division Infantry, citing concerns over hooliganism and insecurity.
Meanwhile, a section of elders and opinion leaders in Obongi have appealed to government to ensure a level playing field for all candidates and political parties, warning against a repeat of the 2021 elections that were marred by intimidation, torture and the fatal shooting of a primary school pupil during a campaign rally in Obongi Town Council.
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