Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) MPs-elect concluded their Jinja retreat at the weekend divided, on who to back for speaker, between Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga and her deputy Jacob Oulanyah.
Although NUP will be the main opposition political party in the 11th Parliament, it is yet to sponsor a candidate of its own.
The race for speaker has attracted Kadaga (who is seeking a third term), Oulanyah, FDC spokesperson Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda and DP’s Richard Ssebamala.
But even before the retreat, most of the just over 60 NUP elected MPs seemed to fall between the Oulanyah and Kadaga camps.
Both Kadaga and Oulanyah belong to the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).
In fact, NUP announced it would hold the retreat (which just ended) after some of its MPs attended Kadaga’s campaign lauch and openly expressed their support for her re-election bid.
There were also reports that Bobi Wine and his NUP MPs-elect had met Kadaga at Kabira Country Club and pledged their support to the NRM leader.
The NUP MPs left Jinja without a resolution on who to back for speaker.
According to Bobi Wine, the party’s parliamentary caucus will discuss the matter and come up with a resolution.
“We set up select committees for the parliamentary caucus and the local government leadership to steer the process of determining who we shall back for positions such as Speakership in Parliament and Local Councils,” he said.
