Mpuuga Speaks Out on Deep Friendship with Muwanga Kivumbi Despite Political Differences

By the Torch Reporter,

Mengo, Kampala- Hon. Mathias Mpuuga Nsamba, the outgoing Member of Parliament for Nyendo–Mukungwe and Commissioner of Parliament, has opened up about his relationship with jailed Butambala County MP, Hon. Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi.

Speaking during a talk show on CBS FM, Mpuuga emphasized that political differences have not eroded the longstanding friendship between the two leaders.

“We are all prisoners; the difference with Muwanga is that he is physically restrained. He knew even before his arrest that he was, in a way, a prisoner. We are friends and we have a lot in common,” Mpuuga said.

He noted that while prisoners have the right to choose who visits them, Kivumbi did not decline to meet them — a gesture Mpuuga described as a positive sign that their bond remains intact despite belonging to different political camps.

Mpuuga stressed the need to move away from what he termed “childish politics,” where individuals treat one another as enemies simply because of differing political views.

“Seeing people he grew up with reminds him that he is not alone in that situation. We must distance ourselves from politics where people stop greeting each other because of disagreements,” he said.

He added that disagreements are a normal part of life, drawing a parallel to family relationships where differences do not necessarily end bonds.

Hon. Kivumbi, who serves as Vice President for Buganda under the National Unity Platform (NUP), was in January charged with terrorism-related offenses stemming from election violence and was remanded to Kitalya Prison pending investigations.

It should be recalled that following Mpuuga’s fallout with NUP, he was replaced in the party’s leadership structures by Kivumbi. In the subsequent elections, NUP fronted Hon. Gyavira in Nyendo–Mukungwe, who went on to defeat Mpuuga.