Members of the DP Bloc who joined hands with the Firebase crew in 2020 to form the National Unity Platform (NUP) have broken off from Uganda’s leading opposition political party, citing discrimination, incompetence, and derailing of the struggle for regime change by a sect of party leaders.
The fallout follows months of heightened tensions in NUP which have seen the party divided into several factions struggling for control over resources and influence.
The DP bloc members, led by former presidential candidate Walter Lubega Mukaku and former Makindye East Member of Parliament Michael Mabikke, held a press conference on Wednesday, May 29, 2024, and announced the termination of their cooperation with the Makerere-Kavule-based party.
They noted that the dictatorial tendencies exhibited by the party president, Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, could not allow them to fully execute their intended plan of causing regime change in Uganda.
The aggrieved members further revealed that NUP has abandoned the struggle for regime change, concentrating on fighting prominent leaders in the opposition instead of fighting President Museveni.
In his remarks, DP bloc’s Michael Mabikke lashed out at Kyagulanyi for failing to transform from a mere musician and measure up to the task of steering a political party. “NUP party president is an incompetent leader for the struggle who has failed to transition from music to a real politician who can handle present challenges,” Mabikke said.
The fallout adds to the pile of challenges NUP is facing with just over a year to the 2026 general elections.
Several other members, among them Mathias Mpuuga, Abed Bwanika, and Joyce Bagala have hinted at leaving the party, citing its continued advocacy for homosexuality, continued attack on the Buganda Kingdom, and the undermining of experienced politicians in the party by incompetent Kyagulanyi’s family members and firebase thugs.