OYAM, UGANDA – The campaign team for Oyam District Woman Member of Parliament, Hon. Santa Alum Ogwang, has intensified its grassroots mobilization, even as the legislator prepares for a fresh legal battle in Kampala next week.
This follows an appeal filed at the High Court by the NRM Chairperson for Abok, Francis Oyuku, and two others. They are challenging the recent Electoral Commission Tribunal decision that dismissed their petition. The petitioners allege that Hon. Alum added "Ogwang" to her name and forged signatures of her nominators.
While the MP is in the capital awaiting the hearing, set to potentially commence on Monday, her political machinery on the ground has shifted into high gear.
Led by the Oyam District Vice Chairperson, Mr. Chris Ongom, the team on Saturday stormed four venues across Oyam Town Council and Acaba Sub-county, presenting a robust development manifesto and forcefully countering opponents' accusations.
Addressing crowds, Ongom framed the election as a choice between substantive development and empty gestures. He ridiculed the distribution of maize seed by opponents, drawing a sharp analogy.
"Can a man whose wife is in labour pain ask for a bazooka [maize seed] instead of an ambulance?" Ongom posed. "How can you even ask for maize when there are no proper roads to transport the patient to a hospital?"
He credited Hon. Alum with tangible deliverables, asserting, "Through her voice in Parliament, Oyam Health Centre IV is set to be elevated to a district hospital. Furthermore, 38 roads have been constructed using resources she personally facilitated."
Ongom urged the people of Oyam to reward the MP's consistent support, which he said is offered "without any discrimination."
The campaign events also featured strong critiques of the ongoing legal challenge. Brian Oguttu, the Councilor for Aber Sub-county and FDC Chairperson for Oyam, expressed dismay at the political tactics.
"I wonder what kind of politics has entered Oyam," Oguttu stated. "This running to court and witch-hunting has never been our tradition here."
He nostalgically cited former Oyam leaders like the late Okello Engola and the late Okullo Epak, noting that they would present their agendas to voters and allow them to decide freely, without resorting to litigation.
Adding his voice, Cipriano Otine, the Oyam District Secretary for Finance, framed the legal manoeuvres as a sign of desperation.
"It is clear that Santa Alum is winning, and nobody can defeat her on the ground," Otine claimed. "So, they have resorted to doing dirty things against her."
The message from the campaign trail is one of defiant confidence. As the legal war escalates in Kampala, Hon. Santa Alum Ogwang's team is betting that their focus on development track records and grassroots engagement will outweigh the courtroom drama, convincing voters that their future lies with parliamentary representation, not protracted legal disputes.
