Martin Ojara Mapenduzi was on Thursday evening declared the winner of the hotly contested Bardege-Layibi Division NRM parliamentary primaries.
He defeated singer-turned-politician Bosmic Joyce Otim in a race marred with tension and allegations of electoral malpractice. David Nyeko, the NRM election officer, announced the results at around 8:30 p.m. at the party’s division offices under heavy security presence from both the police and the army.
Mapenduzi polled 4,102 votes (66.9 per cent), defeating Otim, who garnered 1,900 votes (30.9 per cent). Other candidates Denis Okello Oweka polled 56 votes, Robinson Oryema Ogeri 49 votes, while pastor Robert Roy Ola (the 2021 flag bearer) polled 24 votes.
Speaking shortly after being declared flag bearer, Mapenduzi, the incumbent legislator and former Gulu district chairperson, pledged to rally the party’s grassroots structures to deliver an 80 per cen win for President Museveni in the 2026 general elections.
“The process was difficult because I was dealing with people who don’t respect any rules, people who don’t believe in systems. And you can imagine even members of the opposition came to campaign against me as if they were members of the NRM,” Mapenduzi said, accusing his opponents of using opposition figures to campaign against him.
“Hon Gilbert Olanya was here, all the way from Amuru, even today [Thursday] he was inciting the youth opposite the 4th Division barracks in one of the polling stations, Onen Charles, the member of parliament for Laroo-Pece – all of them were here, but I kept my calm because I knew what I was doing,” he added.
Mapenduzi officially joined the ruling NRM party earlier this year after nearly five years as an independent MP. Previously, he was a staunch FDC member, having defected from the opposition before the 2021 elections.
Otim, a former opposition People Power Movement mobiliser, joined the NRM in April 2022. The Bardege-Layibi primaries were marred by violence, with police firing teargas to disperse Otim’s supporters, mostly youth, who staged a procession in the city centre before the announcement of results.
Otim did not appear at the tally centre, and his agents cited irregularities in the process. Attempts to contact him were unsuccessful.
Elsewhere in Gulu city: Kitara, Reeni secure NRM flags
In Pece-Laroo Division, Tony Kitara, a seasoned lawyer, emerged victorious with 4,717 votes, defeating his only opponent, Grace Atim, who scored 1,460 votes.
For the Gulu City Woman MP seat, Halima Joyce Reeni, current speaker of the Gulu City Council, was declared the party’s flag bearer after garnering 5,801 votes (51.5 per cent). She narrowly beat Jolly Laker Andruvule Okot, who got 5,434 votes (47 per cent), while Concy Lagum trailed with 182 votes (1.5 per cent).
Laker has since contested the results, citing election irregularities. While the Pece-Laroo polls proceeded peacefully, the chaotic scenes in Bardege-Layibi highlighted tensions that have gripped the NRM’s internal races in urban areas.
NRM urges unity after primaries
Zaitun Driwaru, commissioner with the NRM Electoral Commission, who oversaw the elections in the Acholi and Lango sub-regions, urged party members to maintain unity despite the outcomes.
“When you go in for the election, you will always have a winner, and you will always have a loser, because for every position we contest for, there is only one position to win, while the rest will be for losers, but you are not losers in the party,” she said.
Driwaru encouraged aggrieved candidates to formally file complaints with evidence to the NRM secretariat, noting that all allegations would be investigated. She also announced plans for a reconciliation programme to heal divisions and foster unity following the primaries.
“Let the results of the election not divide us, let us walk in peace because NRM as a party is a peace-loving party and it loves all its people, and because of that, let us have unity after the election,” she added.
Kilak North results delayed
In neighbouring Amuru district, results for the Kilak North parliamentary primary had yet to be announced by press time. The race features incumbent MP Anthony Akol, who defected from the FDC earlier this year to join the NRM, Christopher Ojera, a 2021 contender, and Kenneth Okot, chairperson of Atiak Town Council.
Kenneth Tookuru, the NRM presiding officer in Atiak, said the results were delayed due to protests over suspected irregularities, especially in Pabbo sub-county, where vote tallies arrived around midnight and sparked disputes among candidates.
Efforts to reach Amuru District NRM registrar Walter Kidega and District NRM chairperson Wilfred Odiya Baguma were unsuccessful, as both had their phones switched off.