Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) presidential candidate Nathan Nandala Mafabi has pledged to prioritize agricultural value addition and rural infrastructure, saying Butaleja’s rice has great potential but suffers from lack of storage, processing, and marketing support.
Speaking during a rally in Nabiganda Town Council, Butaleja District, Mafabi praised the quality of local rice and faulted government for failing to help farmers benefit from their produce.
“Butaleja rice is so sweet it can’t fail to find a market. I expected the government to have built storage and value addition facilities here so that farmers can add value before selling," he said.
"That’s exactly what my government intends to do when entrusted with power."
The FDC flag bearer, who has shifted his campaign from the Sebei sub-region to Bukedi, began his tour with rallies in Butaleja and Tororo districts, where he emphasized economic empowerment, education reform, and cooperative revival.
Butaleja, known for its vast wetlands that support rice farming, faces chronic poverty, poor road networks, and limited access to markets.
Locals told Mafabi that transporting rice to buyers is difficult due to poor roads and lack of milling facilities.
“We don’t have a value addition facility to help us process rice before selling... Our roads are poor and make it hard to deliver rice to the market,” one of the residents said.
Mafabi later opened the FDC district office in Butaleja Town Council before proceeding to Busolwe Town Council, where he addressed another large crowd that included many schoolchildren, a reflection of the ongoing teachers’ strike disrupting education across the country.
He criticized the government’s pay disparities between science and arts teachers, promising to end the imbalance.
“Who produced the science teachers if not arts teachers? Why should we value only science and ignore those who laid the foundation? That’s a wrong calculation my government will correct,” Mafabi said.
In Nagongera, a proposed new district in Tororo, Mafabi was welcomed by a local NRM leader — a sign of growing cross-party curiosity about his campaign.
There, he promised to finally construct the Nagongera–Busolwe Road, which residents say has been promised for years without progress.
He also vowed to revive the Bukedi Cooperative Union to support farmers, stabilize prices, and create jobs in the region.
“My government will ensure that every citizen in this country has money in their pocket,” he pledged.
By the end of the day, Mafabi had addressed more than five rallies across the two districts and is expected to continue his campaign in Busia District tomorrow.