The National Resistance Movement (NRM) has intensified its grassroots campaign to reclaim the Kalangala District Woman Parliamentary seat, with senior party officials pitching camp in the island district ahead of a planned visit by President Yoweri Museveni.
On Friday, NRM Deputy Secretary General, Rose Namayanja Nsereko, traversed Mugoye Sub-county, holding village-to-village mobilisation meetings in Bumangi and Bugoma. She was accompanied by Bujumba County MP William Lugoloobi and several local party leaders.
The by-election follows the untimely death Hellen Nakimuli who had retained her seat for the second term in the January 2026 by-election. In the 2021 General Election, the National Unity Platform (NUP) made significant inroads in the Buganda region, including parts of the Kalangala islands. The ruling party is now using this by-election to claw back its historical support in the district.
Addressing residents in Bumangi, Namayanja thanked the islanders for their historical support of President Museveni but acknowledged the growing political competition within the Buganda region. She cautioned voters against electing opposition candidates, arguing that doing so inadvertently isolates communities from central government budgeting processes.
“When people vote against leaders who can directly engage with government structures, it is not the President who loses,” Namayanja said. “The biggest loss is felt by the communities themselves because development programmes and services are delivered through government systems.”
Namayanja pointed out that several development projects initiated during Idah Nabayiga’s previous tenure as Woman MP stalled after she left Parliament in 2021. She argued that the district would have achieved greater progress had Nabayiga remained in office to lobby the state.
The NRM deputy secretary general explained that national resource allocation heavily relies on the ruling party’s internal structures. She noted that community priorities are first vetted within the NRM Parliamentary Caucus before moving to Cabinet and the floor of Parliament.
“Our regions benefit from the national cake through the budget. Leaders who understand government systems and work closely with the ruling party are better positioned to capture and address the concerns of their people,” she added, describing Nabayiga as an experienced legislator who understands Kalangala’s unique challenges.
Bujumba County MP William Lugoloobi echoed Namayanja’s sentiments, describing Nabayiga as the “missing link” for Kalangala’s leadership. Lugoloobi stressed that having an all-NRM parliamentary team from the islands would allow leaders to lobby the central government as a unified bloc, making it easier to secure funding for infrastructure and the local fishing economy.
Namayanja urged NRM supporters to remain united and aggressively recruit from the opposition. “Many who are now serving in the NRM once belonged to other political parties. We do not want any part of Kalangala to lag behind in development,” she urged.
The village-to-village mobilization serves as a precursor to a major ruling party rally scheduled for Monday. President Museveni, who is also the NRM National Chairman, is expected in Kalangala to officially hand over the party flag to Nabayiga and boost the final leg of the campaign.
The Electoral Commission has slated the polling date for June 24, 2026, in a race that is widely seen as a litmus test for the NRM’s strength against opposition forces in the island district.