UGANDA: WOULD UGANDA’S OPPOSITION ACHIEVE UNITY TO CHALLENGE PRESIDENT MUSEVENI’S TYRANNICAL REGIME?

So Longest Uganda Opposition party still endows repression on Museveni-omic National Resistance Movement polarization and commercialization, no single uniting from will be in the offing.

GULU CITY-MONDAY, JULY 14, 2025.

Today, July 14, marked the 21 years for multiparty democracy under the progressive Uganda Oligarchy Kampala regime since the 2005 referendum, headed by Ochegere total of votes cast was 3,941,088 out of a registered total votes 93,144, allowing the return of democracy.

As the National Resistance Movement (NRM), primary election is heating up ahead of  July 17, 2025, grassroots primary election, NRM parliamentary are digging their hold to beat the opposition  candidates vying to dislodge the 40 years President Museveni dominate in power

The question Ugandan voters will be asking is Uganda political landscape the unity of opposition parties is crucial for effective challenges to the NRM, especially given Museveni’s ruling party dominance and his repression of opposition activities.

Meanwhile opposition parties face yet another challenge, like state interference, financial constraints, and lack of resources, uniting and amplify their voice, increase their bargaining power, and offer a stronger alternative to the electorate.

Political observer for the Guardian News as part of investigative journalism burrowed how the 40 years of Museveni repression’s hallmark still undermines the role of political parties, through announcing Legal Notice No. 1 of 1986, banning the activities of political parties from holding delegates conferences, it claimed that political parties had not been banned.

Thus, the law barred parties from holding delegate conferences, opening party branches, sponsoring candidates and recruiting membership, and displaying party culture.

However, after 40 years down the road, the condition remains worsened than before in 1986 as of now abduction, kidnapping and disappearance of Unity National Platform (NUP), involvement of Uganda People Defense Forces (UPDF), Army generals are the face of militarization as it seen in Army General throwing billions of Uganda Shillings amidst horrible poverty-stricken voters.

One would answer and wonder what else it was, and now 40 years down the road, the contradiction is that at the same time, the NRM was doing exactly what it prohibited the parties to do.

The NRM ruling party terrorized political opposition rallies by using the dreaded Ugandan military, police forces, and paramilitary intelligence during the mobilization of political mass supporters across the country.

The 2005 Uganda multi-party referendum

Nelson Ocheger, the self-style leader of the Action Party (AP), was fronted by the Ruling Movement party as the Uganda People Congress (UPC), party, Democratic Party (DP), Conservative Party (CP), and JEEMA Party they boycotted the year 2005 multi parties referendum as it was political gimmick set to hoodwinks the International World that Uganda was set to return to multi parties acuities to win the donor funding.

Before that, in 2000 referendum was carried and upheld the retention of the movement’s Ruling government and rejected the party’s activities.

Till now, the Back Star News political analyst, based on the fact R-T-E Elections in Referendum in Uganda document stated that the contradictions underlying the intention of the NRM were not entrenched in the new Constitution of 1995 (Article 71). This article provides for Movement as an alternative system of political parties.

Under Article 269, the activities of political parties were to remain banned until such a time when a referendum would be held to decide either way. Therefore, the new Constitution legitimized the Movement Ruling Organ and kept political parties in “Limbo”, the cold.

The attempt in 2001, by a new political formation by Dr. Kizza Besigye, President Museveni’s bush war personal Doctor under the Reform Agenda, was politically muzzled by a barrel of guns during the Feb.

13, presidential election that year, later on forcing the former President Museveni ally turned critic Dr. Kizza Besigye, to flee to South African.

As the attempt by some party activists to protest the ban and political prosecution was seriously met by state repressive measures, and the organizers were harshly dealt with, while the Oyeng Yeng Kampala Editor Luo newspaper was sent into political exile outside the country, as many people disappeared in hundreds.

Walter Akena, a political analyst working with the ACORD research Think Tank based in Kampala, has a strong argument and is still casting doubt on whether Uganda’s opposition parties are still endowed with individual party greed or whether President Museveni will not use his long hand to cause another split in the opposition parties’ unity.

Do you think the new unity between PFF and ANT holds water?”

Walter Akena, the coalition started way back in Uganda from 1996 when Dr. Paul Ssemogerere, with other opposition parties from Inter Parties Forum for Cooperation, but it failed.

In the 2001 Reform Agenda, a political pressure group cooperation of Dr. Kizza Besigye flopped. In 2016, another attempt to unite the opposition parties, the Inter-Party Cooperation, the Transition Democratic Alliance, when Prof Bukenya walked in with rejoining Norbert Mao, DP, and Amb. Olara Otunnu, Uganda People Congress Party UPC, and John Patrick Amama Mbamazi, Go Forward opposition parties alliance, let us have a look at why all the attempts never yielded a uniting front.

Since 1996 has been an attempt for the opposition parties have been fighting to form a single presidential candidate, but why? Based on individuals player in opposition there has been a long arm of Government, when Prof. Bukenya joined the coalition, he joined because the government sent him to disorganize the opposition party’s unity, he was sent by state and was the long arm of the government and greed in the opposition president Museveni will never allow opposition cooperation flourished, that is UPC, FDC, ANT and PFF are the groups of weak opposition parties.

Is there any hope that Nandali Mafabi, the new FDC party president, will grab all the votes from Mbale, Bugishu Sub-Region?

Walter Akena argues that all people in Mbale and Tesu Sub Region are not going to vote for FDC, although Patrick Amuriat Oboyi hailed Tesu Sub Region because Nandali Mafabi and Gen Mugisha Mutu were a creation of Dr. Kizza Besigye.

National Platform Party NUP) is so longest-serving Kyagulanyi Bobi Wine because the NUP party President is NUP. When you remove Bobi Wine no NUP and NRM without Museveni, there is no NRM.

Walter Akena stressed that FDC Najanakumbi has lost its credibility because they have not yet recovered from the dirty money scandal, there is now creak between Nandali Mafabi and former FDC party president Patrick Amuriat Oboyi who Dr. Kizza Besigye’s project, Mutu, was also engineered by Nandali Mafabi.

Prof. Morris Ogenga Latigo argues that the newly formed PFF alliance with ANT must remember that the main goal is not just to resist President Museveni; the NRM party should not be formed to just fight others, and they must be built to lead the country.

Saying PFF’s federal focus it aligns with Uganda’s current challenges and could help to address deep-rooted issues like inequality and political exclusion.

Prof. Ogenga stressed that Uganda’s border problems are not about individual leaders, but the lack of peaceful politics and a spirit of working together.

Latigo says that currently the Museveni it is not possible still remain part of our history, but President Museveni ended his leadership badly as he has transferred his leadership to a military junta; instead of Uganda’s road to democratic transition is being managed by his son, Gen Muhoozi, through a military backdoor.

“That will be what President Museveni’s people will remember, not his achievements.”

Prof. Ogenga Latigo is still doubtful and says it would be danger whether PFF should filed a presidential candidates in 2026, argues and caution, he believe that opposition parties must first unite and focus on building common voice to highlight Uganda current challenges, including poverty, poor infrastructure and rising political tension being orchestrated by NRM party architecture to cause chaos before presidential election and presidential and aftermath of election, while the regime descended to the thirds arms of Government, the judiciary to legitimize robbed presidential election.

This is why political interference has taken center stage since 1989. Whenever Uganda went into a General election, there would be anarchy. “I advise all parties in opposition to come together in a genuine coalition-not to fight NRM, but to offer Ugandans a reason to believe in a better leadership.

Prof. Ogenga Latigo predicts that the next general and Presidential polls may not be peaceful, and security forces are likely to interfere. Arguing that while PFF’s new model seems promising, it must avoid repeating the internal rift that has weakened other opposition parties.

Prof Ogenga Latigo warns that the new formation, PFF, is structured with two main leadership arms, the Council of Eminent Persons led by Col. Dr. Kizza Besigye. If he provides strategic guidance on this technical side, including Lord Mayor Eras Lukwango leads the operation. “The structure aims to reduce international conflict, something that plagues their former party, FDC.” Prof Ogenga Latigo, the former Leader of Opposition in the 8^th Parliament, warns.