Samuel Walter Lubega Mukaaku, a member of the Democratic Party (DP) and a political activist, has asked the party members interested in joining the National Resistance Movement (NRM) government to diligently vacate the DP, saying that he knows the kind of DP they want, and it is that of Paul Kawanga Ssemogerere, which is the real DP.

He said that the state of affairs in the DP, like in any other opposition party, is disturbing, and it is something they are not proud of.

Mukaaku made these remarks on April 22, 2024, on one of the local televisions, where he appeared to discuss the mass DP re-registration drive across the country and whether it was the party’s awakening moment from despair.

“I know it is not going to be easy, and I know the weight the captors have put on us, but we shall not be intimidated,” Mukaaku said.

Mukaaku said that the re-registration of DP members is about the abolition of the old DP and taking it away from its original members.

Makaaku’s argument stems from Mukasa Mbidde’s (a former member of the East African Parliament and a member of the DP) statements during a radio talk show over the weekend, where he said that President Museveni, as the leader of Uganda, should share his knowledge of how he has managed to stay in power and run the country for the longest time, more than his predecessors.

Mbidde added that Museveni should, above all, share his knowledge of the army that he has managed to turn into a people’s army like it is today.

“In the past, when one would come face-to-face with a soldier, they would want to run for their dear life, but not anymore; now you find that about eight women want to get married to one soldier,” Mbidde said.

He noted that people are just adamant and do not want to see things the way they are, adding that those who want to see and acknowledge should do so, given the current situation where people can go to the extent of sitting with the soldiers at the same table in a bar and having a drink in peace.

Additionally, Mbidde said that President Museveni’s most remarkable trait is how he has managed to maintain peace and deal with international interventions with other nations, namely the East African countries. He cited that people need to start learning and appreciating the president’s varsity knowledge of issues.

“With the knowledge the President has, he needs to start writing books and also put up a foundation like that of Julius Nyerere, because the things he knows, if God can help us and they are recorded down in books, this country will become a key tourism area in that field because it will be packed and filled with diverse knowledge; and since his wisdom is immense, it cannot be exhausted through meeting small groups like traders, KACITA, among others,” Mbidde stated.

Uganda has started gearing up for the 2026 general elections, with different political actors and parties preparing for country-wide mobilization. Currently, DP is on a re-registration exercise for its members, and all political players are seeking to make a comeback for the elections.