POLITICAL TENSIONS FLARE AS MINISTER BAHATI FAINTS AT FUNDRASING EVENT

Our reporter

KABALE

Hon. Min. David Bahati, Minister of Trade and Industry, fainted on Sunday at a fundraising function at Kahungye Catholic Center in Ndorwa West, Kabale district. Bahati’s escort noticed in time and caught him as he was falling, then placed him on a plastic chair to help him recover.

After a short recovery period, instead of expressing gratitude for his health, Bahati blamed his opponent, Ndugu Counsel Naturinda Eliab Mporera, who has shown interest in contesting as the Member of Parliament for Ndorwa West.

Bahati criticized Mporera and district counselors who supported Mporera’s early campaign.

At the same event, Eliab Mporera was initially denied a seat at the high table where Minister Bahati was seated, though he was later given one. Mporera was also denied the opportunity to speak at the event by the MCs, allegedly on Bahati’s orders.

This incident is part of a pattern of behavior from Bahati’s team. Earlier this year, Hon. Canon Enock Kazoba, known as a political assistant to Bahati, has repeatedly denied aspiring MPs the chance to speak at various functions where he served as MC. An example is the event at Kamuganguzi C.O.U, where aspiring candidates were not allowed to address the audience.

Last year, Bahati ordered the Kabale RDC to stop a friendly match in Kahungye Sub-county organized by Mporera, deploying a significant police and UPDF presence to halt the event aimed at bringing joy to the community.

Minister Bahati accused Mporera of early campaigning, though its not like that since Mporera has a right to Worship we saw Bahati campaigning in the same speech. When Mporera finally spoke at the fundraising event, he prayed for Bahati’s recovery and called for peaceful politics.

Mporera’s calm response emphasized his desire for violence-free politics, in contrast to the tensions highlighted by recent events.