Jimmy Akena
Kampala, Uganda — Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) party president and Lira City East MP, Jimmy Akena, has issued guidance to his supporters across the country on how to vote in the upcoming January 15 presidential elections.
Akena, who was blocked from contesting in the presidential race last year after the Electoral Commission cited legal irregularities within the UPC, has consistently blamed the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) and President Yoweri Museveni for what he terms political interference in his bid.
Had he been cleared, Akena would have joined the race alongside candidates including President Museveni (NRM), Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu (NUP), Nathan Nandala Mafabi (FDC), Mugisha Muntu (ANT), Mubarak Munyagwa (Common Man’s Party), Robert Kasibante (National Peasants Party), Frank Kabinga Bulira (Revolutionary People’s Party), and Joseph Mabirizi (Conservative Party).
At a press conference held at Uganda House in Kampala last year, Akena publicly instructed his supporters not to vote for the incumbent president. Instead, he urged them to vote for any of the seven nominated candidates—excluding Museveni.
“If you don’t want to vote for any of them, then write my name on the ballot and vote for me,” Akena told journalists, in remarks that later went viral on social media.
Although he did not openly endorse any specific opposition candidate at the time, sources close to the UPC leadership now say Akena is actively mobilising his supporters to back National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu.
This emerging alliance appeared more evident on October 23, 2025, when Akena hosted Kyagulanyi at his late father’s ancestral home in Akokoro, Apac District. The visit marked a rare public show of closeness between the two leaders during a tense political period.
According to sources, the two discussed possible collaboration and strategies aimed at unseating President Museveni. After leaving Akokoro—where he paid tribute to former President Dr Apollo Milton Obote—Kyagulanyi addressed rallies in West Lango.
President Museveni has, however, dismissed claims that he had a hand in blocking Akena’s candidacy.
Speaking to journalists in October at Baralegi State Lodge in Otuke District, Museveni said he was unaware of Akena’s presidential ambitions until he read about them in the media.
“I didn’t even know Hon. Jimmy wanted to contest. I just saw it in the papers. Later, I checked and found it was merely legal problems on their side. It was legal, not political,” Museveni said.
As Uganda heads into the final days of campaigning, Akena’s political stance and quiet alignment with Kyagulanyi could significantly influence voting patterns in the Lango sub-region, where the UPC still commands a loyal following.
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