Over 30 youth quit opposition, join NRM

The NRM national treasurer, Ms Rose Namayanja (4th left) poses with some of the youth purportedly from different opposition parties who defected to NRM on February 20, 2020

What you need to know:

  • Ms Namayanja said that of the 38 youth, 27 are from FDC, five from DP, two from TDA and 4 from Peace and National Unity (PNU).

  • The FDC Deputy Secretary General, Mr Harold Kaija, said that those might be the NRM youth who buy FDC cards but actually do not belong to the party.

  • However, he refused to divulge further details saying he needed to first establish whether those youth actually belonged to FDC.

At least 38 youths purportedly from different opposition parties have quit and crossed over to National Resistance Movement (NRM).

Ms Rose Namayanja, the NRM national treasurer, on Thursday said at NRM secretariat in Kampala: “We are happy that we have got youth from different parts of the country. The party was started by the youth, so when the new youth join the party it makes us happy.”

She said the youths are from parties like Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) and Democratic Party (DP) among others.

Ms Namayanja said the youth will add more strength to the party. “Whenever the youth join us, it adds strength to the party and when the youth start understanding the beauty of their country, what they can do in future, by the time they grow then we know our country is in good hands,” she said.

While being welcomed to the NRM party, Mr Lawrence Mugumya who said he has been the FDC youth chairperson Kalangala District accused top leaders of hiding behind FDC during the day yet they support NRM.

“We have decided that enough is enough, no one has given us money to join NRM, but because our top leaders during the day they are in FDC but at night they are in state house supporting NRM. For us we have decided we shall not do that, we have decided to join in broad day light,” he said.

Mr Mugumya on behalf of the fellow youth that are said to have crossed over to NRM apologized to President Yoweri Museveni for their participation in FDC and other political parties saying that they have been doing it unknowingly.

“We realised that President Museveni has done some things that are good to the country. We want to apologise, we were opposing him unknowingly. I thought NRM leadership without President Museveni will end, but I have seen leaders who have given us strength that where NRM is heading it can still be in power,” he added.

Mr Mugumya further stated: “We don’t have any plans of returning back, but you never know because even President Museveni did not start from NRM, he started from UPC. We have decided to join NRM during this period.”

Ms Namayanja said that of the 38 youth, 27 are from FDC, five from DP, two from TDA and 4 from Peace and National Unity (PNU).

The FDC Deputy Secretary General, Mr Harold Kaija, said that those might be the NRM youth who buy FDC cards but actually do not belong to the party.

However, he refused to divulge further details saying he needed to first establish whether those youth actually belonged to FDC.