Sembabule on the Brink: How Deadly Elections Have Become a Way of Life

In many parts of Uganda, elections are spirited contests marked by slogans, songs, and the occasional political tension.

But in Sembabule, especially in Lwemiyaga County, elections are increasingly defined by bloodshed and fear.

The recent shooting at a campaign rally for Lwemiyaga County Member of Parliament Theodore Ssekikubo, which left one supporter dead and the legislator injured, is not an isolated event.

It is the latest episode in a pattern of violent political confrontations where bullets speak louder than ballots.

Fred Ssembuusi, a supporter of Ssekikubo, died on the spot after he was shot in the chest during a confrontation between security personnel and rally attendees.

The MP himself was injured in the palm. The incident has reignited concerns about state involvement in political disputes and the lack of government action in curbing violence in the region.

“They do not deploy to maintain order. They come to suppress dissent,” said a local elder who requested anonymity. “We are no longer participating in democracy. We are surviving a war.”

Sembabule has long been a stage for fierce political rivalries, particularly within the ruling National Resistance Movement.

The district’s elections are rarely peaceful, and violence has almost become a routine part of the process.

In 2010, confrontations between opposing factions escalated into physical fights. In 2015, campaign convoys were blocked and teargassed.

During the 2020 party primaries, electoral violence made national headlines. Despite these repeated incidents, the government’s response has remained minimal and largely reactive.

In 2025, with another election approaching, Sembabule once again finds itself under political siege. The weapons have returned. The fear remains.

Residents say the violence has become so common that it is now expected.

“Once campaigns begin, we stop sending our children to the shops or school. That is the reality,” said Joan Nassali, a mother of three from Lwemiyaga.

Eyewitnesses say the recent incident began when a group of soldiers stormed Ssekikubo’s rally and ordered supporters to disperse. When the crowd resisted, the soldiers reportedly began shooting.

Ssekikubo has accused retired Brigadier General Emmanuel Rwashande, his rival in the NRM primaries, of organizing the raid.

He believes the attack was intended to intimidate his supporters and potentially eliminate him.

Rwashande declined to respond to the allegations.

The government has remained mostly silent about the ongoing violence in Sembabule.

While the Sembabule Resident District Commissioner Jane Frances Kagaayi confirmed that investigations are underway, she provided no details and gave no assurance to the public.

Ssekikubo and other political figures argue that this silence is not just neglect but a sign of complicity.

Despite numerous reports and complaints over the years, no significant action has been taken against those responsible for election-related violence in the district.

“This is not the first time people are dying in Lwemiyaga during elections. But the government only watches. They never act unless forced to,” Ssekikubo said.

The situation in Sembabule is not just a local crisis. It reflects deeper issues in Uganda’s political system, where internal party conflicts often escalate due to a lack of transparency, accountability, and neutral policing.

Political observers warn that if violence continues unchecked, Sembabule could become a dangerous model for other districts during the 2026 general elections.

“When security forces act like party operatives instead of neutral protectors of public order, democracy suffers,” said a political analyst at Makerere University. “What is happening in Sembabule is a national alarm.”

As the dust settles on the bloodstained field in Kireega village, families are left in grief and fear. The calls for justice and reform continue to go unanswered.

Unless the government takes decisive action to restore order and fairness, Sembabule’s elections will remain a cycle of violence where the dead do not vote, and the living vote in fear.