Xavier Radio Ug News 24 7
By Amos Tayebwa
Buhweju
Residents of Buhweju County have expressed frustration over what they describe as government neglect, blaming the decade-long absence of President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni from the area on the constituency’s continued support for opposition MP Francis Mwijukye.
This follows the President’s recent campaign rally in Omungaju, Buhweju West—a neighboring constituency—while once again skipping Nsiika, the traditional political center and home to the district headquarters.
Locals say President Museveni last held a rally in Buhweju County more than ten years ago, during the tenure of former area MP Ephraim Biraro, an NRM member. The trend, they argue, changed after Mwijukye of the FDC won the parliamentary seat, making Buhweju one of the few opposition strongholds in western Uganda.
“We feel pain that the President stopped coming to Buhweju County,” said Leonard Musinguzi, Vice Chairperson NRM for Buhunga Sub-county. “He was supposed to hold his campaign rally at Nsiika, but because people here voted the opposition, the President decided to go where his support is stronger. We have lost out on services because our MP is busy fighting the government.”
Grace Agaba, aspiring MP Buhweju county addressing supporters
Musinguzi said many residents believe development programmes, infrastructure improvements, and national events have bypassed them due to the strained relationship between their MP and the central government.
John Bosco Katungi, LC1 Chairperson of Rujembe Village in Buhunga Sub-county, noted that service delivery has deteriorated, with some roads becoming nearly impassable.
“We regret sending an opposing MP to Parliament,” Katungi said. “We last saw the President in Bistya during Hon. Biraro’s time. Now we have no representative close enough to the government to lobby on our behalf.”
He added that residents feel politically sidelined and worry that their concerns are not reaching decision-makers at national level.
Grace Agaba, an aspiring MP for Buhweju County under the NRM ticket, echoed similar sentiments, saying it is painful that the President now avoids the constituency.
Aspiring NRM MP Grace Agaba
“Buhweju County looks like it was removed from the map,” she said. “The President is in the district campaigning, but our MP won’t be at the rally to represent us. How will he lobby for services when he spends his time abusing the President on radio and TV? We want to apologise to the President for sending a wrong person in Parliament.”
Agaba argued that no leader can effectively lobby for development without working in cooperation with the sitting government, adding that residents deserve an MP who can restore cordial relations with State House.
“Government has money for roads, schools, and other services, but you cannot lobby for these when you are anti-government,” she said. “Once elected, I am committed to working closely with the government to ensure the people of Buhweju receive their fair share of national programs.”
One of the locals speaking at Agaba’s rally
As President Museveni intensifies his campaign trail across western Uganda, the political divide within Buhweju District appears to have deepened. While Buhweju West enjoys routine presidential attention as an NRM stronghold, the residents of Buhweju County say they are being punished for their political choices—an accusation that could shape voting patterns in the upcoming elections.
For now, the electorate remains vocal: they want a leader who can bring State House back to Buhweju, reopen political doors, and restore services they believe have been lost over the past decade because of Mwijukye.
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