By KT Reporter
The National Resistance Movement (NRM) youth elections turned chaotic on Tuesday night, with running battles between delegates, security forces, and party officials, before Tanga Collins was declared the winner in the early hours of Wednesday morning. At 5:26 am, Collins was announced the winner of the NRM Youth League chairperson race with 1,567 votes against Brenda Kiconco’s 1,355. The process was marred by disagreements over delegate lists, violent confrontations, and accusations of bias.
Delegates clashed among themselves before turning on security and members of the Electoral Commission, led by Dr. Tanga Odoi. Chairs flew, fists landed, and security forces—including the Special Forces Command—were deployed to restore order. The lining-up voting system, scheduled to start at 4 pm, was delayed for hours as lists were verified. Dozens of supporters of Mercy Kanyesigye, a candidate in the National Youth MP flag bearer race, were arrested and detained at Kololo Airstrip Police Station.
By 10 pm, tension escalated when Brenda Kiconco, who came second, commanded her supporters not to vote, citing irregularities. “Who is Kiconco? All the youth go to the pavilion. Police, police, police, where are you? If there is no police in this country, I am going to call for police,” shouted Dr. Tanga Odoi. The youth fired back, asking, “Who is Dr. Tanga?” Concerns of bias were heightened by the fact that Collins, the eventual winner, is Dr. Odoi’s son. Angry delegates accused the commission of falsifying lists to favor him.
Frustrated, Dr. Odoi told the delegates: “This is not a job I studied for in Makerere, it’s you NRM people who brought me from Makerere University, so listen to what I am saying.” Police later forced the youth into the pavilion for verification, before counterterrorism, Field Force Unit, UPDF, and Special Forces sealed off the voting grounds. Voting began at 3:55 am under heavy security.
As lines formed, Jacob Eyeru, former National Youth Council chairperson, withdrew from the race and crossed to Kiconco’s side with his supporters. Youth mocked Collins’ campaign slogan “Nobody Can Stop Reggae” by chanting that they were “stopping Reggae tonight.” Counting was led by Ambassador James Kinobe and lasted over an hour.
Meanwhile, elections for the NRM Youth League regional vice chairpersons were suspended after Kiconco’s supporters disrupted the results and demanded Dr. Odoi’s resignation, accusing him of bias and aiding his son’s victory. Earlier in the day, other elections had proceeded peacefully, except for the Entrepreneurs League vote, which was suspended after accusations that businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba was hiding voters in Kenya and buying delegate tags.
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