National Unity Platform is set to hold a fundraising campaign dubbed NUP Patriots 2K Run on August 13th, 2023, at Long Bridge, Arington, Virginia, under the theme “Supporting Families and Victims of Torture and Abductions in Uganda.”
NUP collects funds through various channels under the guise of helping and supporting persons in need, a narrative some of its supporters have on several occasions punched holes in and accused NUP of always using the help and torture victims cards to collect money.
According to NUP die-hard Lubega Mukaaku, these are some of the known tactics NUP leaders employ to solicit for one family and its close friends, and no accountability is given for all the money collected from these fundraising projects.
“When pressed for accountability, I was openly told, by the deputy spokesperson MafumbirioWaswa that I don’t own a house and wife in the Kampala suburbs to demand for accountability,” said Mukaaku.
Mukaaku added that “Last year in October, NUP launched a fundraising campaign to raise funds to rescue Ugandans stuck in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to which a number of people, organisations, and even its MPs contributed. A lot of money was collected, but no accountability was ever given by NUP.”
In several queries from the supporters, records indicate that out of the billions collected in the drive to return Ugandans from the Middle East, NUP returned only 12 girls, while the government footed the bill for the rest that managed to return.
“And only 12 girls were repatriated by NUP; the rest were repatriated by the government, in a sequence starting with 156, 450 up to 1500 Ugandans were returned home, by the government with the help of the UAE government,” said Mukaaku.
He added that it is no secret that NUP is in the habit of fabricating torture and abduction victims to seek public and international sympathy and funding, like it was with the case of Moses Simbwa, a known accident victim from Jinja, being paraded in Nairobi, Kenya, as a torture victim by NUP.
“Ask yourselves, why we stopped seeing torture victims paraded by NUP leaders on social platforms After Eric Mwesigwa’s revelations of how NUP inflicted on him torture marks, promising to give him UGX 50 M so that he frames the security agencies,” said Makuuku.
According to Michael Kakembo, MP for Entebbe Municipality, NUP relies on generous donations, from individuals, corporations, and organisations, donations that are not only made as a one-time thing but also as monthly or annual commitments.
“NUP actively solicits for donations through online campaigns, platform fundraising, applying for grants from the government, charitable trusts, government agencies, IPOD, charity walks, galas, and diaspora fundraising, like it is going to do with 2K RUN in August,” said Kakembo.
Kakembo added that despite all the ability to amass resources, the party leadership, who are also the resource handlers, have failed on the important note of accountability.
“Our sources of funds are wide and many, membership fees, subscriptions, and MPs monthly deductions. However, lack of transparency and accountability, is not sitting down well with a lot of people of the public, and my fellow MPs who feel cheated, like in the case of Dubai repatriation MPs were forced to contribute, but to date we don’t know how much was collected and how much was spent,” said Kakembo.
He further added that the party loses credibility once some members feel they are being used and cheated of their money if some things are not clear to them.
With its previous fundraising drives and parading wrong torture victims, one would not be wrong to conclude that all projects done by NUP to fundraise for non-existent victims and self-made victims are specifically for personal interests and not the common man.
