Ugandans held Local Council (LCI) elections Tuesday but the biggest loser among the candidates countrywide was NRM’s former treasurer Singh Katongole. He must be very embarrassed.
Katongole is a former Member of Parliament (Rubaga North) who was yesterday embarrassed as residents of Makamba Zone could not vote him, despite investing so much money in the campaign where he hoped to be elected village chairman.
Katongole was accused of ballot stuffing and ghost voters from his home. Katongole was standing against the popular incumbent Ms Proscovia Lukwago for the position of LC1 Chairman.
Mr Katongole survived being lynched by angry residents, who accused him of electoral malpractices and hiring non-residents to vote him. The residents accused Katongole of tampering with the voters register, and transporting voters from other areas so that they could vote for him, which ended up in a riot at Makamba Zone polling stations.
Katongole in 2011 was withdrawn from Parliament following a petition by current Rubaga North MP Moses Kasibante on issues related to electoral malpractices including voter bribery and ballot stuffing.
Katongole has once again rejected by the local population due to his failure to observe the electoral law. In 2016, Katongole could not be NRM’s flag bearer on grounds that he lacked proper academic papers.
As the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi prepares to visit Uganda this month, all is not well with Katongole as he has been accused by some members of the Indian community of sidelining them for personal gain.
However, Katongole’s embarrassing defeat in the LCI election makes a big statement as regards his political journey. Many are saying the defeat could have marked the end of his political journey more especially that it taught him that use of money is not enough to win an election.