The National Unity Platform (NUP) is under the spotlight as its leadership has resorted to controversial methods to maintain their grip as the leading opposition party in the country, such as repeatedly paying wages to their detained supporters to stay in prison as a way to gain political relevancy, account to their funders, and blame the government for selective punishment of their supporters.
According to sources who prefer anonymity, NUP, under the leadership of Robert Kyagulanyi, has been paying off detained supporters to remain in prison for extended periods for political gain.
Sources reveal that this calculated move by the NUP aims to portray the party as the victim of political persecution while solidifying loyalty and dedication among their funders by exploiting the plight of their incarcerated members.
“The NUP leadership, through this move, hopes to garner public sympathy, discredit the government, and maintain their lead as the leading opposition party in the wake of Dr. Kizza Besigye declaring his comeback to active politics and country-wide mobilisations under way,” said the source.
According to reports, NUP’s lawyers lobby goons to cause mayhem before court proceedings in order to rile up court officers and security personnel.This is evidenced by the actions of both the detainees and the hired goons last week at the court martial, who caused chaos that ended in their being remanded.
“Whatever the leadership is doing now is a calculated move, from Bobi Wine returning from abroad and rushing to Kitala prison claiming he had gone to check on the prisoners, yet in actual sense he knew prison officials had quarantined the prison due to red eyes, to his supporters making noise at the court martial, it is also a play to annoy the government and President Museveni so that he does not release some of the prisoners like he had earlier promised,” added the source.
These revelations and dealings have sparked outrage among the relatives of some of the detained supporters, who have condemned the leadership for manipulating their relatives for their own political advantage and accountability to their funders.
“Our husbands are languishing in prison to get a little money from Bobi Wine, who gets millions from funders on account of political prisoners. The leadership has manipulated our people into staying in jail for some money, but it is tearing our families apart. I believe that money is not the most important thing; rather, it is family. NUP is killing our young families,” a disgruntled source stated.
Political experts note that, as the controversy continues to unfold, NUP leadership needs to pronounce itself on the exploitation of its detained supporters and make sure its supporters are released; otherwise, the future of the young party hangs in balance with these disturbing revelations, yet Bobi Wine’s close associates and family members are free to move about freely.
As the spotlight shines on these shocking revelations, Ugandans are left to ponder the true cost of political ambition and the length to which NUP is willing to go to remain relevant in Ugandan politics.
