A group of NRM entrepreneurs delegates who were allegedly trafficked to Tanzania by embattled businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba have appealed to the party secretariat to rescue them saying they are stranded in hotels with no upkeep money and cut off from communication with their handlers.
The delegates mostly youth revealed they were promised facilitation and a comfortable stay until the CEC elections scheduled for Monday, August 25th but the reality has turned into misery.
According to them, Basajjabalaba’s daughter Mariam Basajjabalaba who coordinated the transfer gave each of them only Shs1 million for upkeep. That money they say has already run out.
“We were deceived. Mariam told us the upkeep would last until elections, but here we are stuck in Arusha with nothing left. We can’t even buy food. We want to return home and vote freely not under captivity,” lamented one delegate by text message on condition of anonymity for fear of his life
Another delegate said communication with Mariam has been completely cut off. “When we try calling her, she doesn’t pick up. We have been left in foreign hotels like prisoners. We are appealing to the Secretary General, Hon. Richard Todwong, and our National Chairman to intervene so we can return home and participate in the elections.”
Others expressed anger at what they called a “cross-border vote plot” designed to keep them away from their constituencies until polling day. “It is clear Basajjabalaba wanted to cage us here so that we don’t exercise free choice. This is vote-rigging of the worst kind,” said a youthful delegate from Ishaka.
The stranded group, numbering about 170 delegates, have demanded transport back to Uganda. “We don’t want Basajjabalaba’s dirty money. We want to go home. The party must help us or else many of us will miss the elections,” added another delegate from Mbarara.
Security sources in Kampala confirmed they are aware of the complaint and are working closely with the NRM secretariat to establish how delegates were ferried across the border. “This is a matter under investigation. We shall ensure all delegates participate in the August 25th polls,” a senior security official said.
The pleas come just days after reports emerged that Basajjabalaba had created “his own polling stations” in neighboring countries to manipulate the upcoming election.
The new revelations have intensified calls from across Uganda for the NRM to block his candidacy with critics describing him as a man who has consistently brought the party and entrepreneurs’ league into disrepute.
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