The National Unity Platform (NUP) has unveiled Irene Nampala, sister of the late Helen Nakimuli, as its flag bearer for the forthcoming Kalangala District Woman MP by-election.
According to the party, Nampala emerged victorious from a field of 14 aspirants who underwent a rigorous vetting process conducted by NUP’s Elections Management Committee (EMC).
The by-election follows the death of Nakimuli on April 19, 2026, which created a vacancy in a seat NUP has held since the 2021 general elections.
NUP Elections Management Committee chairperson Harriet Chemutai said the selection process assessed candidates on their leadership credentials, loyalty to the party, grassroots mobilisation capacity, and ability to retain the constituency for the opposition.
“We considered several factors, including candidates’ connection to the people, their commitment to the party, and their ability to effectively represent the interests of Kalangala residents,” Chemutai said.
Nampala is a political activist and community mobiliser from Kalangala district who has built her profile through grassroots engagement and opposition politics in the island district.
She is widely associated with mobilisation efforts during the 2021 general elections and subsequent NUP party-building activities in the area. Party officials describe her as one of the emerging young female leaders in Kalangala, with strong links to local party structures across the district’s fishing communities and islands.
She has also been involved in advocacy initiatives focusing on women’s empowerment, youth livelihoods, and improved access to social services in hard-to-reach communities.
According to Chemutai, Nampala’s ability to connect with women and young voters was among the factors that strengthened her candidature during the vetting process.
Her selection forms part of NUP’s broader strategy to retain its foothold in Kalangala, where the party registered a breakthrough in 2021 when Nakimuli defeated the National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate to win the Woman MP seat.
Nampala is expected to face stiff competition from the ruling NRM, which has already fronted former Kalangala Woman MP Aida Nabayiga as its candidate. Other political parties are yet to announce their flag bearers.
The contest could also be shaped by ongoing discussions among opposition parties on the possibility of fielding a joint candidate. Earlier this week, Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) president Patrick Oboi Amuriat told journalists at the party headquarters in Najjanankumbi that the party was open to backing a joint opposition candidate following consultations with other opposition leaders.
However, it remains unclear whether all the unsuccessful NUP aspirants will rally behind Nampala or pursue alternative political arrangements that could split the opposition vote.
Charles Lwanga Kirumira, NUP’s Greater Masaka regional mobilisation coordinator, said the party would engage the unsuccessful aspirants to foster unity and avoid divisions that could undermine its electoral prospects.
“We are going to engage all the aspirants and encourage them to support the party’s flag bearer so that we maintain a united front going into the by-election,” Kirumira said.
The Electoral Commission has scheduled the Kalangala District Woman MP by-election for June 24, when voters will elect a successor to the late Hellen Nakimuli.
The NRM has shaped ugandan politics so much that the leading opposition party which is often crtical of NRM and museveni is behaving in he same manner. So I ask them …why do you criticise museveni for pushing his son to presidency when you are encouraging hereditary/family politics too?