Incumbent MP Shartsi Kutesa Steps Down for Sodo in Mawogola North

Shartsi Nayebare Musherure, daughter of former Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kahamba Kuteesa, has withdrawn from the Mawogola North parliamentary race, just weeks before the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party primaries. 

Musherure, the incumbent MP, announced that she was stepping down in favour of President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s younger brother, Godfrey Aine Kaguta, commonly known as Sodo, with whom she fiercely contested the NRM flag in the 2021 party primaries.

Although Musherure was last week duly nominated by the NRM Electoral Commission to contest in the upcoming primaries, she stated that her decision to withdraw followed a meeting with President Museveni. She said the President advised her to step aside in the interest of peace and party cohesion. She specifically cited the violent clashes that marred the 2021 party primaries between her and Sodo, which left scores of voters injured and the district deeply divided.

The two, who are close relatives, were battling to replace Kuteesa, who had announced his retirement from elective politics. Their rivalry in 2021 triggered intense political tension across Sembabule, forcing President Museveni to intervene. Though Sodo won the NRM flag, Museveni directed him to step down in favour of Musherure, who later won the general election as an independent candidate.

In her statement, Musherure confirmed she was withdrawing to protect her supporters from a repeat of the hostility they experienced during the previous primaries. “After a meeting with the President and consultations with my family, I have taken the decision to withdraw, to avoid subjecting our supporters to the threats and brutality that they endured in the last party primaries,” she said.

On his part, Sodo has repeatedly told supporters during early campaign meetings that there was an agreement between him and Musherure that she would not seek a second term. He revealed that President Museveni met with members of both camps in 2021 and brokered a truce, promising support in the next election cycle.