The National Resistance Movement (NRM) senior leadership has sounded a stern warning to party members in Butaleja District against disunity and support for independent candidates, urging leaders to rebuild the Movement’s grassroots structures and renew loyalty to the party.
Speaking during a meeting with district leaders on Sunday, NRM National Vice Chairperson Al-Hajji Moses Kigongo emphasized that unity and discipline are central to the party’s survival. He reminded members that the Movement’s foundation lies in its local structures, which must be protected and strengthened.
“Let us forgive our colleagues and remember that the Movement is bigger than all of us,” Kigongo said. “If the structures collapse, the Movement will collapse too. We are here because of those structures.”
Kigongo decried the growing trend of internal divisions and the backing of independents by some officials, calling it a betrayal of party values. “How can a district chairperson support an independent? Is that person really a leader?” he asked. “We know them, and time will come when we expose them.”
He urged leaders to take charge of mobilization in their own communities rather than depending on officials from the headquarters. “We don’t need people from Kampala to come and organize your villages,” Kigongo said. “Move house to house and get the votes for the Movement.”
Warning against monetizing politics, Kigongo reminded members that true service to the NRM must come before personal gain. “You can get money through proper channels, but don’t use it to destroy the party,” he cautioned.
Following his remarks, NRM Secretary General Richard Todwong reinforced the message, framing the meeting as a turning point for internal cohesion. “This is an important meeting, and I’m glad we’re opening a new chapter where disagreements are opportunities for internal correction, not division,” he said.
Todwong noted that the President had taken a firm stance against independents, insisting that those supporting them would be stripped of party positions. “We must support the selected flag bearers. Independents must step down,” Todwong said. “If you are supporting an independent, you must step down from your NRM position. Disloyalty will not be tolerated.”
NRM Director for Communications Emmanuel Dombo used the meeting to clear his name following past allegations of inciting violence in Butaleja. He revealed that the President had instructed an ISO probe, which exonerated him. “The ISO investigation exonerated me,” he said. “I’ve always supported the party and continue to do so.”
Dombo said he chose loyalty over personal ambition after losing in the party primaries. “I want to make it clear that I have never considered running as an independent,” he stated. “When I lost in the NRM primaries, I refused to run independently because it would have split the party. I am committed to NRM’s unity.”
He called for an end to false accusations within party ranks, saying they weaken collective effort. “I’ve never contested as an independent, and I will continue to mobilize support for the NRM flag bearers,” Dombo affirmed. “We must stay united.”
Adding her voice, NRM Director for Finance and Administration Hajat Medina Naham underscored the need for discipline and adherence to party decisions. “In all meetings with the President, he has never allowed independents to run against NRM flag bearers,” she said. “If you are an NRM official and supporting an independent, you must step down from your position. We cannot hand over party resources to leaders who are not loyal.”
Naham reiterated that loyalty is key to sustaining the Movement’s dominance. “We must all fall in line behind the flag bearers to ensure NRM’s success,” she said.
The meeting, which also drew the attendance of the party’s National Treasurer, Ambassador Barbara Nekesa, signaled renewed efforts by the NRM leadership to mend divisions and reenergize its grassroots machinery ahead of future political contests.
