The Deputy Secretary General of the National Resistance Movement (NRM), Rosemary Namayanja, is set to lead campaigns to hunt for votes for President Yoweri Museveni in the Greater Luwero districts.
Museveni’s popularity sank to its lowest levels in the 2021 general elections in Luwero, Nakaseke and Nakasongola districts.
In Luwero District, Museveni obtained 41,166 votes (27.94%), while his rival Robert Kyagulanyi garnered 103,782 votes (70.45%).
The NRM party also lost four Member of Parliament seats and several other local government positions.
In Nakaseke District, Museveni won with 38,009 votes (53.1%) against Kyagulanyi’s 32,063 votes (45.1%). The NRM also lost two parliamentary seats—Nakaseke South and Nakaseke Central—to the Opposition.
In Nakasongola District, Museveni scored 35,823 votes (65.18%), while Kyagulanyi received 18,213 votes (33.14%).
As the National Unity Platform seeks to consolidate its gains and expand further, President Museveni has launched new campaign groups to help him regain lost support. He has deployed Namayanja to lead a team that will canvass votes for him across the region.
Namayanja explained that she will lead the campaign team to popularize Museveni’s candidature through the parish mobilisation model.
“As the Secretariat, we shall empower the structures to conduct campaigns from parishes where they explain the NRM gains and popularize the candidature of President Yoweri Museveni,” Namayanja said.
She listed livelihood gains, noting that the NRM government has injected over 72 billion shillings into the districts under the Parish Development Model. She also cited increased numbers of health centres and schools as major achievements.
“By the time the NRM government came to power, there were less than 30 schools across the region, but now it boasts 488 schools. We’ve expanded from five health centres in 1986 to 88 health centres now. On water access, we’ve grown from 27 sources in 1986 to over 2,000 sources today, with 1,371 in Luwero alone,” Namayanja said.
She added that the NRM is starting campaigns to explain these gains and is ready to recapture all constituencies currently occupied by NUP candidates.
“Last time, due to the COVID-19 lockdown, our structures didn’t campaign and our rivals told a lot of lies to people. We shall tell our NRM gains and win the districts,” she said.
Namayanja further argued that some residents who voted for Opposition MPs are now regretting, claiming the representatives “are only abusing government but not delivering services.”
However, Robert Ssekitoleeko, the Bamunanika County Member of Parliament, said the NRM faces an uphill task in regaining support. He argued that although schools and health centres have increased, the services remain poor.
Ssekitoleeko also pointed to unfulfilled pledges, including the tarmacking of the Zirobwe–Wobulenzi road and the construction of a pineapple fruit factory.
“I don’t see what the NRM mobilisers will tell the voters—that 40 years later, President Yoweri Museveni is yet to fulfill such pledges,” Ssekitoleeko said.
Namayanja’s political journey began in Luwero as a youth leader at village level before she rose to district leadership. She served as Youth MP, Nakaseke District Woman MP, Minister for Luwero Triangle, and Minister of Information before being appointed NRM Treasurer and later Deputy Secretary General.
She commands respect from both Opposition and NRM leaders for her non-confrontational political approach. It is believed that her deployment in the Greater Luwero districts may help shift political momentum in favour of President Museveni.
