KIBAALE. National Unity Platform presidential bearer Robert Kyagulanyi aka s Bobi Wine, has rallied youthful voters in Kibaale District who are currently the majority of voting population not to re-elect the aging Finance Minister Matia Kasaija and Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja for Member of Parliament positions saying the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) which has been in power for four decades has failed to address key concerns of Ugandans .
“Shouldn’t Kasaija and Nabbanja go?” he asked as a cheering crowd responded in agreement.
“They must go, we are fighting for freedom,” Kyagulanyi said during a campaign stop in the oil-rich midwestern region that attracted hundreds of supporters. The region has for long served as an NRM strong hold and the incumbent Yoweri Museveni has in the previous elections been winning with a big margin .
Bobi Wine ,who kicked off his vote hunting in Bunyoro sub region on Monday criticized the government for what he called misplaced priorities, lamenting that Ugandans were taking menial jobs abroad despite the country’s rich wealth in minerals and ,tourism “I am shocked that Uganda, which was offering aid to gulf countries like UAE during Amin’s time, now sends its people to the Gulf region for petty jobs,” he said.
“How can our children from the oil region go to look for petty jobs in the Gulf?”
Uganda’s government has defended its record, pointing to growing trade and investment relations with Gulf states.
Bilateral trade between Uganda and the United Arab Emirates, for instance, surpassed $1.5 billion in 2024, largely driven by gold exports, construction materials, and remittances from over 150,000 Ugandans working in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
Officials have also argued that overseas employment programmes have reduced youth unemployment and increased household incomes through remittances, while the country continues to attract Middle Eastern investment in energy, construction, and agro-industrial projects.
Kyagulanyi’s remarks come as political temperatures rise ahead of next year’s General Election , with the opposition seeking to make inroads in NRM strongholds like Bunyoro sub-region, which hosts major oil development projects.