By KT Reporter
The long-running standoff between Masaka City Mayor Florence Namayanja and Resident City Commissioner (RCC) Ahamada Washaaki has eased after the National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, was finally granted permission to hold a campaign rally within Masaka City.
For nearly two weeks, Masaka’s political and security leadership were locked in a bitter dispute over NUP’s insistence on using the iconic Masaka Liberation Square, an area symbolic for opposition mobilisation, as the main rally venue.
The City Security Committee had initially barred Kyagulanyi from holding any major event close to the central business district, arguing that the campaign would disrupt trade, interfere with essential services, and cause heavy traffic congestion.
However, following what officials described as “thorough deliberations,” the committee has now endorsed the NUP campaign team’s request for a rally at the former Masaka District Headquarters playground in Kamugombwa Cell, Katwe Ward, approximately 2.5 kilometres from the city centre, along the Masaka-Mbarara bypass.
Twaha Kasirye, the Greater Masaka Regional Police spokesperson, confirmed the breakthrough, noting that the decision followed a series of engagements aimed at striking a balance between political rights and public order.
“We have agreed to the programme, and we expect strict adherence to the security guidelines,” Kasirye said, cautioning NUP supporters against acts that may provoke security personnel or members of the public who do not share their political views.
According to the Electoral Commission’s approved campaign schedule, Kyagulanyi is slated to canvas support in Masaka City and Masaka District on Saturday, November 29.
But in the run-up to his visit, Mayor Namayanja, who also serves as the greater Masaka NUP regional mobilisation secretary and campaigns coordinator, has been in a fierce showdown with RCC Washaaki.
Even as late as Thursday, Namayanja insisted that Kyagulanyi’s rally would proceed at Liberation Square, arguing that NUP had secured legitimate clearance from the Masaka City Council, the official custodian of the venue. She accused Washaaki of overstepping his authority and attempting to curtail opposition activities under the guise of maintaining order.
Washaaki, on the other hand, maintained that Liberation Square was unsuitable, citing its proximity to Masaka Regional Referral Hospital and its location along some of the city’s busiest roads. He insisted that rallies be shifted to the outskirts to minimise disruption to businesses and essential services.
The eventual compromise allows Kyagulanyi to hold his main rally just outside the CBD, close enough for mobilisation, but far enough to ease security concerns. The committee also softened its earlier position that restricted Kyagulanyi’s procession to community roads on the periphery, now permitting the use of some town roads, provided the routes are negotiated in advance.
Gyaviira Lubowa Ssebina, the party’s parliamentary candidate for Nyendo-Mukungwe Division, said Kyagulanyi will address two major rallies, one for each of Masaka’s two divisions.
He accused RCC Washaaki of “arrogance” and deliberate attempts to frustrate opposition candidates. “With the final clearance in place, we are now mobilising our supporters to turn up in huge numbers to listen to our presidential candidate,” Ssebina said.
Kyagulanyi’s campaign trail has been punctuated by confrontations with security forces in several parts of the country, often stemming from disagreements over routes and venues. These clashes have at times resulted in arrests and injuries among his supporters, which police have attributed to “naughtiness and disruptive conduct.”
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