Theodore Ssekikubo, the Lwemiyaga County Member of Parliament in Sembabule district, has been defeated in the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party primaries for the flagbearers for the next general election.
Ssekikubo has lost the party flag to his main opponent, retired Brigadier General Emmanuel Rwashande, who gathered the highest number of votes in the Thursday party primary elections.
Deborah Arayo, the Sembabule NRM Electoral Commission Returning Officer, declared Rwashande the winner with 16,358 votes, translating into 54.3% against Ssekikubo, who garnered 8,702 votes (28.92%). The other candidates are Bwire Edmond with 960 votes, former State Minister for Animal Husbandry Joy Kabasti with 471 votes and Jacob Kato, who came last with 11 votes.
According to the declaration of results form, Ssekikubo won in only one out of the five sub-counties in Lwemiyaga constituency, which he has represented in parliament for five terms.
Rwashande noted that his win is a representation of the majority voice of voters in Lwemiyaga who are yearning to change the status quo and the non-performance of the incumbent legislator.
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Mary Begumisa, the incumbent Sembabule district Woman MP, has also lost the party flag to Florence Nambaziira.
According to the party Electoral Commission, the incumbent woman MP came second with 34,032 votes, losing to Nambaziira, who scored 41,733 votes. Ester Gwajwa scored 15,460 votes, followed by Hellen Mbabazi with 8,357 votes.
Notably, in the last general election, Mary Begumisa went to parliament unopposed, but she has since been involved in sharp disagreement with the majority of the local leaders, whom she accuses of undermining her.
The incumbent MP for Mawogola West, also State Minister for Health Anifa Kawooya, was also declared winner of the party primaries, beating her main challenger, Wilberforce Begumisa.
Oswaldo Dezi Byuma, a second-time contestant, was also declared the winner of the party flag for Mawogola county after defeating two challengers who including Yasin Kironde and Denis Ddumba