National Unity Platform (NUP) Deputy, Mathias Mpuuga, the Commissioner of Parliament and Nyendo Mukungwe lawmaker, has firmly asserted his position as a founding member of the party, stating that he will never leave the party as Bobi Wine has not even spoken to him personaly.
Mpuuga's stance signals a widening divide within NUP, exacerbated by his strong support from Buganda Kingdom royals and elites who played pivotal roles in mobilizing backing for Bobi Wine's 2021 presidential bid and the party itself.
Having previously served as Kabaka’s Minister, Mathias Mpuuga issued a stern warning amid the escalating internal discord within the political faction.
"I am here to affirm that I am not leaving NUP, a party I founded with my colleagues consciously," stated Mpuuga, emphasizing, "I am not here to destroy or kill it."
In a letter dated March 18, 2024, NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya formally notified Speaker Among of the party's decision to revoke Mpuuga's nomination, citing constitutional grounds. The letter also reinstated Zaake Francis, who had been removed from the position in March 2022, following a ruling by the Constitutional Court.
The letter to the Speaker from NUP read, "If Hon. Mathias Mpuuga remains in the Parliamentary Commission as a Member, he will do so without the mandate of the Party and the opposition platform."
Below is Mpuuga's full statement:
" This morning, I addressed the media on the state of affairs in our party. Attached hereunder is my PRESS STATEMENT Colleagues, I come to you this morning after days of silence and meditation to address two issues on my next plan in the fight for total liberation of our country. Questions and speculations have been on as to whether, where and when I am going. I wish to state that I am a founder member of NUP where I serve as a Deputy President. I am not leaving the party I founded and I’m not doing anything that destroys a young party I participated in establishing with conscience and conviction. At least I’m not yet moved to that level. Secondly, I have seen a copy of a letter circulating on social media. The owner of the copy is visible from the bottom. The letter is addressed to the Rt. Hon. Speaker of Parliament, and I’m only informed of the contents by copy. I will not respond thereto, save to restate my position as communicated to the party and the country. I wish to affirm that I confess no wrong doing whether in law or elementary common sense. The position of the law has been clarified to whoever wished to understand; but to not deliberately slander and defame me for short-term political security. I wish also to re-assure all comrades in the struggle for a fair Uganda that my commitment has never waned; that I am not and shall never be part of any form of corruption. When we find ourselves disagreeable on anything in our midst, we must find mechanisms for mature resolution; which is different from grandstanding and desire to settle political scores, at the expense of reputations of comrades with whom we struggle to offer the country better leadership. Ugandans must be encouraged at all times to question the decisions of their leaders; especially those in higher offices, and making critical decisions on their behalf. In the current circumstances, it is also not difficult to tell that the objective was never on accountability because no one provides financial accountability at press conferences and on social media.
The previous days have cast much doubt within the Ugandan populace as to whether our Party is capable of handling the humongous task of liberation and effecting solutions to the political and social challenges our country is facing. We must regain public confidence, trust and demonstrate that we are worthy the peoples support in leading the charge for change and transformation that the Ugandan masses are yearning for. Whereas Gen. M7 has been candid on his dynasty agenda, including the latest reshuffles in the UPDF that saw his son ascend at the helm of the country’s military, the largest opposition party looks clueless and unable to guide its bruised cadreship. Even the renewal of term of the EC Commissioners who bungled and fidgeted with the last election did not raise the curiosity of the supposed vanguard opposition party! Let me now assure the entire NUP leadership, membership, supporters and the general public, that NUP is my party and I harbor no intentions whatsoever of leaving; I am going Nowhere, rather I’ll in the coming days embark on a process of instituting internal Party reforms to make it a credible and competent Government in waiting. To our supporters and followers in the diaspora, we immensely appreciate your contribution to the building of our young party and the quest for a new Uganda in general. You interact with a lot of information, but largely misinformation targeting your justifiable desperation for change. I pledge to you my availability and clarity of mission and purpose in whatever we do to change the trajectory of our country.
Ugandans in the diaspora are desperate to cement their contribution towards change; beyond social media commentary and material support which seem to be a major pre-occupation of many in leadership home. We should be embarking on a joint push for major reforms in our electoral laws and major constitutional shifts to enable diaspora citizens’ participation in our electoral activities beyond manipulating the change agenda by selfish individuals here. By the end of the planed NUP reform process, arbitrary, obscurantists and deviant work methods, lack of internal conflict resolution mechanisms, nepotism, corruption, greed and abuse of office, extortions, blackmail, defamation and slander, including lack of internal democracy shall only but be practices of the past within our great party. Finally, in the near future, I’ll be unveiling to the public what next. For God and my Country. "
