The National Unity Platform flag bearer in Omoro County Parliamentary by-election Simon Toolit Akecha has revealed that he wouldn’t be in the race if Andrew Ojok Oulanyah hadn’t been fronted as the NRM flag bearer.
According to Toolit, he was not interested in the race but decided to join the contest after the former legislator and Speaker of Parliament Jacob L'Okori Oulanyah’s son was chosen and endorsed by President Museveni late last month, before being unveiled by the NRM party as its official party flag bearer last week in Omoro District.
The NUP candidate claims that choosing Ojok instead of other mature and experienced candidates within the NRM was a poor judgment that provoked him to contest.
Toolit was formerly a member of the Forum for the democratic Change-FDC party. He was unveiled as NUP flag bearer by the party’s President Robert Ssentamu Kyagulanyi late last month.
He explained that crossing from FDC to NUP was a better choice since they are currently the strongest Opposition political party in the country with the highest numbers of Members of Parliament.
Toolit contested earlier with Oulanyah in Omoro County in the 2016 Parliamentary election and came second with 9,088 votes against Oulanyah’s 11,044 votes. He however claims the election was rigged and cast doubt on the fairness of the coming by-election arguing that they will do their best to safeguard their votes.
Toolit was among three other candidates who were nominated on the first day of nomination on Thursday in Omoro District Council hall. the others are Jimmy Walter Onen, Terrence Odonga all independent candidates, and Oscar Kizza, the Alliance for National Transformation-ANT party flag bearer.
The NRM Party Chairperson for Omoro District Denis Kidega however says Ojok was chosen as the party’s flag bearer based on his leadership competencies.
