Bobi Wine launches NUP register update campaign

The leader of the National Unity Platform (NUP) party, Mr Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, launched a campaign to update the party register on April 29.

The month-long registration exercise is set to commence tomorrow and will cut across the country.

During the launch at the party headquarters in Makerere, Kavule in Kampala, Mr Kyagulanyi, who renewed his membership to the party, urged the registrars, who will participate in the exercise, to remain vigilant against potential interference from both State and party leaders.

He said it is routine for government agencies to frustrate the party’s legitimate campaigns and urged the State to allow the smooth flow of Opposition democratic processes.

“You have become official targets of the regime. They will attempt to buy, bribe, and compromise you. But you should know that the regime doesn’t want your support but your credibility, so be very careful because all they want is a picture with you,” Mr Kyagulanyi said.

“The regime wants to put a narrative that all of us are buyable, that is why you have seen some of our leaders and former leaders getting trapped in corruption scandals, be careful because you know the party’s way of dealing with corrupt ones,” he added.

Mr Kyagulanyi also criticised Capt Mike Mukula, the vice chairperson of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) in the eastern region, for reportedly taking the NUP register while welcoming former NUP party members who had defected to the NRM.

“I saw a man that I used to respect, Mike Mukula, doing immoral things, well you can buy the person, but you know as a leader that it is immoral and illegal for you to take a registration book of a different political party,” he said.

Efforts to get a comment on the matter from Capt Mukula were futile by press time as he did not answer our calls nor respond  to messages.

The NUP leaders said the registration campaign is part of the party’s wider arrangements to organise the party structures from the grassroots to the top leadership.

“We have witnessed the overwhelming support out there, but we have a big duty to bring the party support together, well the 2026 elections are ahead, however, we must keep organised such that even if the elections are tomorrow, we are ready for them,” Mr Lewis Lubongoya, the NUP general secretary, said.

Meanwhile, the Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Mr Joel Ssenyonyi challenged registrars to be good ambassadors of the party.

“Let people see you and desire the new Uganda we talk about, let it not be heard that you are among those grabbing peoples land, as leaders it is important that we be disciplined,” he said.

Background

NUP formerly National Unity, Reconciliation and Development Party (NURP) with members under the then People Power Movement is registered with electoral commission. NUP has  about 59 MPs in the house, it is the leading opposition party. With this mass registration, a departure from their approach in the past election, the party is looking to strengthen its grassroot structures.

Updating registers
The National Unity Platform (NUP) registration campaign comes barely a month after the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party concluded a similar exercise.

Addressing the media earlier this month, the NRM spokesperson, Mr Emmanuel Dombo, said at least 18 million people registered for the party.

However, this was refuted by the Opposition leaders who said the NRM was trying to inflate the figures to justify allegations of election rigging against the party in the previous elections.