Speaker Anita Among Condemns NUP’s Protest Campaign, Says Party Is Sabotaging National Progress And Peace

The Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, escalated political tensions this week with a blistering attack on the opposition National Unity Platform (NUP), accusing the party of hiding what she described as immoral and destabilizing influences beneath its umbrella symbol.

Addressing a high-energy rally in Kabale District during President Yoweri Museveni’s campaign tour, Among delivered a fiery speech that left no ambiguity about her disdain for the opposition’s direction and motives.

Among charged that NUP has allowed elements she believes undermine Uganda’s social fabric to flourish within the party. She argued that the opposition has abandoned any pretense of constructive politics and instead built a platform she claims thrives on chaos, manipulation, and deliberate provocation. Her remarks, though controversial, were met with loud approval from the ruling party supporters filling the rally grounds.

“They are not offering leadership,” Among declared. “They are hiding behind an umbrella while pushing agendas that have nothing to do with Uganda’s progress.” She accused NUP of masking what she views as corrosive behavior behind populist messaging aimed at distracting Ugandans from the country’s development record.

Her most forceful criticism targeted NUP’s “Protest Vote” campaign—a strategy encouraging citizens to vote against the NRM government as a form of widespread dissent. Among dismissed the movement as reckless and dishonest, saying it was engineered to stir public anger rather than promote meaningful change. According to her, the protest-vote initiative is not a challenge to government policy but an outright rejection of the country’s stability.

“They are not protesting policies; they are protesting peace,” she told the crowd. “They are not protesting corruption; they are protesting socioeconomic advancement. They are campaigning against the very things that keep Uganda standing.”

Among framed NUP’s message as a direct threat to national cohesion, accusing the party of using frustration as a political tool while offering no alternative vision for governance. She argued that Ugandans deserve leaders who build rather than, in her words, sabotage.

Beyond attacking the opposition, the Speaker used the rally to champion President Museveni’s decision to grant Kabale city status—a move she said will accelerate the region’s growth. Among praised the president for what she called a strategic and overdue recognition of Kabale’s potential, insisting the new status will open the door to increased investment, stronger administrative structures, and better infrastructure.

“City status is not symbolic,” she said. “It is a gateway to transformation. Kabale has earned this, and the president has delivered.”

NRM leaders at the event amplified her message, portraying the ruling party as the only political force capable of guaranteeing security and economic progress. They urged Kabale residents to reject what they described as opposition theatrics and to rally behind the continuity Museveni represents.

NUP has yet to issue an official response to Among’s latest accusations, but party leaders have previously defended the protest-vote campaign as a legitimate response to longstanding governance failures and political repression under NRM rule.

With campaign season gaining momentum, the increasingly confrontational tone between the two sides signals a volatile road ahead as Uganda heads toward the polls.