Frank Gashumba, a political analyst and businessman, has accused the National Resistance Movement (NRM) leadership of neglecting their duties, leaving the burden to party chairman, President Museveni.
During an appearance on NBS Television’s political show Barometer, Gashumba criticized the NRM headquarters, led by Secretary General Richard Todwong, for failing to build support in Buganda despite being allocated Shs 8 billion each quarter.
He emphasized that the NRM’s loss in the Kawempe North MP by-election was due to poor mobilization efforts, especially when compared to the more effective National Unity Platform (NUP).
He also claimed that NRM MPs and senior officials neglected their candidate, Faridah Nambi, during the by-election campaign.
“Before Museveni arrived at the rally in Kawempe, only Balaam had shown up, despite the president having over 80 ministers. On the event day, not one of the 500 NRM legislators attended, while all NUP leaders were present when their party leader visited Kawempe. This clearly shows that the NRM chairperson is left to carry the load alone,” Frank Gashumba said.
He further pointed out that if you asked ten NRM supporters to name the party’s general secretary, none would know. However, he noted, many people are familiar with NUP’s general secretary, David Rubongoya.
Gashumba also criticized the NRM secretariat’s approach to the 2026 general elections, contrasting it with NUP’s active media presence.
“NUP holds a press conference every Monday. I can’t remember the last time NRM held one. It’s clear that they are inactive and disconnected from what’s going on,” Gashumba remarked.
He concluded by expressing concern over the NRM headquarters, noting that while nearly Shs 8 billion is allocated to its operations, the secretariat seems to have abandoned its duties, leaving only the State House as a source of activity for the party.
