Within the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), there's a silent but very intense battle raging on.
Museveni's chief ground campaigners have initiated petty infighting over non clear issues, but highly attributed to uneven distribution of monetary resources, and craving for attention from the chief general himself.
Singers, Bebe Cool, Big Eye and Catherine Kusasira have their own clique, these have taken to the upcountry regions to convince people on why they should vote Tibuhaburwa as the president. theGrapevine clearly understands that Bebe Cool's camp was initially installed to counter National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu alias Bobi Wine's huge crowds, to prove that Museveni's NRM can also attract huge crowds.
However, due to public outcry after Bobi Wine's arrest, the strategy was disbanded. They are now famously doing their boss' job by moving house to house distributing yellow masks and T-shirts, as they ask the voters to vote for the incumbent president.
Museveni's social media warmonger, Ashburg Katto also seems to be commanding his own troop comprising of motormouthed Wisdom Kaye, talkative Kafeero Innocent alias Dr. T Amale, and blogger Isma Olaxess. Ashburg Katto has initiated a program where he has printed Yellow-shirts and inscribed messages of Peace and reconciliation. This group is clearly a strategy to counter Bobi Wine's huge presence on social media. Ashburg however, has gone as far as provocatively stating that his Museveni T-shirts are more expensive than Bebe Cool's. This clearly looks like a desperate move to prove more allegiance to their boss.
There is also a camp for events promoter and self styled NRM fisherman, Balaam Barugahara who has taken upon himself the responsibility of recruiting new supporters into the party, alongside top executive officials like the Presidential Press Secretary, Don Wanyama and SG Kasule Lumumba among other top officials in the NRM party.
It's not clear to ascertain which side Full Figure falls. The motormouthed singer cum presidential advisor, real names Jennifer Nakanguubi is all over the place most of the times, attacking any and everyone there's to attack. She has however gone quite silent since she was bounced by security from attending Museveni's manifesto launch shortly after his nomination earlier on this month citing no invitation to the occassion.
Unlike all the others, only Balaam has been so physically seen close to the president since the campaigns officially kicked off.
In a related development, Don Wanyama and Balaam have also lately rebutted claims that the events promoter was together with Parliamentary backbench commissioner, who is also Bukooli Central MP Solomon Silwany thrown out of the State Lodge in Soroti by President Museveni's Special Forces Command (SFC) guards earlier in the week.
Mr. Barugahara, in a Facebook post described the reported events of him being barred from seeing the President as untrue, saying that he understood the procedure of meeting the No.1 citizen and cannot simply show up without clearance of the Principal Private Secretary.
"Its not true at all. I spent my day in Kumi mobilising for President Museveni. I even attended the last meeting of our Party Chairman," Mr. Barugahara wrote.
The position was also confirmed by Presidential Press Secretary Don Wanyama, who said Mr. Barugahara was never bounced as earlier reported.
"Claims that Balaam Barugahara Ateenyi was kicked out of Soroti State lodge are false. Treat them as such. The immunised mutabani is busy in Eastern Uganda combing every nook and crevice for votes for Mzee wa Kazi YK Museveni," Don Wanyama tweeted.
State lodges are used by the President as residential places whenever he visits the countryside and they are manned by SFC, an elite unit responsible for the security of the President of Uganda and other special operations.
Both State House and Balaam have disputed the reports, after reports had earlier on indicated that MP Silwany was moving in his official Parliamentary car Reg No. UG 0344H along Balaam who is the Managing Director of Balaam Marketing and Promotions Agency in Uganda.
By Baron Kironde
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