The National Unity Platform (NUP) has decided to join the Inter-Party Organisation for Dialogue (IPOD) after years of boycotting it. The move comes after a new law linked government funding to IPOD participation, forcing the party to rethink its stance.
In a letter dated October 7, NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya confirmed the party’s decision to sign an agreement to join IPOD.
NUP, led by musician-turned-politician Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine, had previously refused to join since winning parliamentary seats in 2021, calling IPOD a sham controlled by President Museveni. The party argued it was a tool to prop up Museveni’s regime rather than promote real democratic dialogue.
The shift was triggered by a new law passed in May and approved by Museveni in June. It requires parties to join IPOD to access annual government funding, distributed based on the number of MPs.
Rubongoya acknowledged the law’s force but noted that NUP is challenging it in the Constitutional Court, calling it rushed and poorly consulted.
The letter also confirms NUP’s membership in the National Consultative Forum (NCF), under which IPOD now operates as a legal body for parties with MPs.
“Given our NCF membership, we will sign the IPOD agreement while awaiting the court’s ruling,” Rubongoya wrote.
Signs of NUP’s change in stance emerged earlier. In July, the party sent its treasurer, known for working across party lines, to IPOD meetings to secure funds without fully committing.
By September, Rubongoya had asked the Electoral Commission to include NUP in IPOD talks, calling its exclusion “illegal” amid the funding block.
NUP’s decision is likely to divide opinions. Some supporters could see it as a smart move to keep NUP’s grassroots efforts alive and challenge Museveni. Others, however, say it could weaken NUP’s image as an anti-establishment force.
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