Mukono Municipality Member of Parliament, Betty Nambooze Bakireke, has addressed growing public debate about the National Unity Platform’s (NUP) candidate selection process and the broader state of opposition cooperation ahead of the 2026 general elections.
Speaking on NBS Television’s Barometer talk show on Tuesday, Nambooze revealed that the party had successfully vetted over 400 parliamentary aspirants.
However, she acknowledged that some individuals who initially aligned with NUP have chosen to run as independents.
“The National Unity Platform had over 400 successfully vetted candidates for MP seats, but in a turn of events, we’re now seeing some people running as independents,” Nambooze said.
She cautioned against the assumption that Uganda’s opposition operates as one political entity, stressing that the multiparty system encourages diversity rather than uniformity.
“People often think the opposition is a single political party. In reality, Uganda has several political parties, and when NUP doesn’t have a candidate in a place but PFF or ANT does, that’s a good thing,” she explained.
Nambooze also responded to allegations that NUP organizes and transports supporters to campaign rallies, saying such claims misrepresent the enthusiasm behind the party’s growing base.
“Numbers don’t lie. We’ve heard claims that NUP mobilizes supporters, transports them, and in some cases moves with them throughout the campaign trail,” she said, adding that crowd sizes often reflect the genuine popularity of the party’s message.
Her comments come amid rising competition among opposition parties over candidate positioning and collaboration strategies in key constituencies.