Opposition Members of Parliament Allan Ssewanyana (Makindye West) and Joyce Bagala (Mityana Woman) have expressed concern over what they describe as an uneven political playing field, following reports that several National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidates have gone unopposed in the upcoming general elections.
Ssewanyana said the development does not reflect weakness on the part of the opposition but rather the misuse of political power by some incumbents to edge out competitors.
“If you have over 300 positions and only eight are unopposed, that’s not a big number. It doesn’t show the opposition is weak,” Ssewanyana said.
“Some very powerful people have used their positions wrongly to make themselves unopposed.”
Bagala, however, described the situation as a wake-up call for opposition parties, noting that any political party with unopposed candidates already has an advantage before polling day.
“If a party already has members unopposed, it means they are automatically in the next Parliament,” Bagala said.
“That gives the NRM a head start in the 12th Parliament before the election even takes place. As the opposition, we need to work very hard to close that gap.”
The two MPs said the opposition must strengthen grassroots mobilization and candidate coordination to ensure broader representation across the country.
Bagala emphasized that unopposed positions tilt political balance and undermine competition, which is a core pillar of democratic elections.
Their comments come amid growing debate about the fairness of electoral processes, with critics warning that state-backed incumbency continues to disadvantage opposition contenders