The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) presidential candidate, Nandala Mafabi, has promised to invest in agriculture to help stabilize the depreciating Uganda shilling.
Mafabi made the pledge while campaigning along the streets of Mbarara on Monday, after a confrontation with security officials forced him to hold a rally that lasted only ten minutes. He later proceeded to Lwengo District.
James Mbetta, a supporter and resident of Kakoba, asked Mafabi about the youth livelihood program, claiming that they have not benefited, and also raised concerns about the poor health system, which forces citizens to buy their own drugs, syringes, and clinical gloves.
Musa Karibu, another supporter, asked why the Uganda shilling has depreciated against the dollar. Mafabi explained that the shilling’s decline is partly due to Uganda’s heavy debt burden and the low value of its products on the market. He promised to invest more in agriculture to boost domestic production.
He also pledged to reduce the high taxes levied on nearly every product in the Ugandan market and to combat the theft of the trillions of shillings collected in taxes.
Mafabi added that creating more employment opportunities for youth would increase the number of people able to buy commodities, reducing the need for high taxes. In 2024, Betty Kamya, the former Inspectorate of Government, reported to Parliament that Uganda loses over UGX 10 trillion annually to corruption, a factor that has slowed the country’s economic development.
Meanwhile, Mafabi was asked to comment on Electoral Commission Chairperson Justice Simon Mugenyi Byabakama’s statement instructing voters to leave polling stations immediately after voting. He said his team plans to meet the chairperson to clarify why voters are not allowed to stay near the polling stations after voting, noting that the law permits people to remain within 20 meters. He encouraged voters to go and exercise their franchise.
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