Robert Kyagulanyi, commonly known as Bobi Wine, the National Unity Platform (NUP) party president, has made a bold move to remove party tickets from Bashir Kazibwe, the Kawempe South Member of Parliament (MP), and Allan Ssewanyana, the Makindye MP, giving them to his family members as he gears up for the 2026 general elections.
The decision, which was made during a closed-door meeting between family and friends at Magere on Thursday, December 5, 2024, saw a lot of changes spelled out to the members present.
Immediately after the meeting, Chairman Fred Nyanzi, as he is commonly referred to, was overheard complaining in the corridors about how Bobi Wine has threatened not to run for presidency; should Nyanzi insist on running as Kampala Capital City Mayor.
A source within the party revealed that in a bid to surround himself with people he can trust, Bobi Wine took drastic measures and axed those he considers to be moles from the party and replaced them with close family members and friends, who will run for those posts.
“Bobi Wine replaced Bashir Kazibwe with his brother Fred Nyanzi for the Kawempe South seat and warned him against insisting on running for the mayoral seat. He also gave the party ticket to Lewis Rubongoya to run against Mohamed Nsereko for the Kampala seat and Nubian Li for Kawempe North,” the source revealed.
The source further noted that among other leaders on Bobi Wine’s weighing plate is Makindye’s Ali Nganda Mulyanyama, who he directed to abandon his interest in contesting for the Kampala mayoral seat and told him to concentrate on his current mayoral seat, citing that Erias Lukwago’s cunning operations around Kampala might cause NUP serious conflicts.
Bobi Wine’s ousting of NUP-established leaders has raised questions about the future direction of the party and inclusivity. As a result, some of the party supporters expressed mixed feelings about the changes, and some believe that Bobi Wine’s family ties would instead strengthen the party’s unity, while others worry that this shift may alienate long-standing members and diminish the party’s democratic values.
Political analysts have suggested that the restructuring reflects Bobi Wine’s desire to create a more cohesive team as he prepares for a challenging electoral battle against the ruling party.
As the political landscape continues to evolve, the implications of this restructuring will be closely monitored by both supporters and opponents of NUP.