Drama and tension gripped a National Resistance Movement (NRM) joint campaign rally in Rukiga District on Monday when voters angrily rejected former State Minister for Labour Herbert Kabafunzaki, preventing him from addressing them.
Kabafunzaki, also a former MP for Rukiga County, had been invited by NRM flagbearer aspirant Alex Magezi Kanuga to speak on his behalf during a rally in Bukinda.
While the duo had earlier appeared without incident at a campaign event in Kamwezi Sub-county, the mood in Bukinda turned hostile.
The uproar began when Rukiga District NRM registrar and rally emcee Yaryakumanyi Selubowa Twaha invited Kanuga to speak.
Kanuga, instead of addressing the crowd directly, called Kabafunzaki to the microphone—prompting immediate boos and jeers from the audience.
As Kabafunzaki attempted to speak, the heckling intensified. Despite pleading for a chance to talk, he was drowned out by angry chants, forcing Twaha to intervene.
The registrar declared it inappropriate for aspirants to bring outsiders to speak at official joint rallies and directed Kanuga to return to the podium.
But even as Kanuga resumed speaking, the crowd erupted again at the mention of Kabafunzaki’s name, booing Kanuga off the stage.
To calm the situation, Twaha invited Dr Sylvia Alianaitwe, the only female aspirant, who was warmly received and allowed to speak without interruption.
Her address appeared to ease tensions temporarily.
Twaha then gave Kanuga another chance to speak, but the crowd refused to cooperate. With order breaking down, Twaha abruptly suspended the day’s joint campaign activities.
“I hereby suspend the joint campaigns,” he announced, cutting short the rally.
Supporters remained at the venue, chanting and trading accusations, as rivalry between Kanuga and fellow aspirant Patrick Kiconco Katabazi’s camps escalated.
The tension soon boiled over, prompting police to deploy anti-riot officers.
Officers fired teargas and live bullets into the air to disperse the crowd. Despite the show of force, supporters defiantly cheered their candidates. Kanuga was eventually escorted away under heavy police guard.
Earlier in the day, the candidates had addressed a relatively peaceful rally at Nyakasiru Primary School playground.
Speaking afterward, Katabazi condemned the violence: “I condemn such acts of chaos, because initially we have not seen this happening.”
The incident has raised fresh concerns over rising tensions in the Rukiga NRM primaries, with calls for tighter security and clearer guidelines on campaign conduct.
