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This restoration meant that political parties were now free to actively participate in national politics.
As a result, this led to the rise of quite a number of political parties over the years, some of which include the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), which morphed out of the Reform Agenda; the Justice Forum (JEEMA); the People’s Progressive Party (PPP); and the National Unity Platform (NUP), among others.
Allowing political parties to actively participate in national politics was, however, only the beginning of trying to turn Uganda into a fully democratic country.
Year in and year out, political parties have constantly faced challenges that range from poor funding, internal divisions, which usually come as a result of differences in ideologies, poor organisation, state sabotage, and, in many cases, a lack of strong leadership to turn their cause into a formidable one, among others.
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The recent developments in the FDC, once Uganda’s leading opposition political party in recent times, have confirmed that these challenges are a big threat to the survival of political parties, especially those in opposition.
The party’s spokesperson, Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda, and the deputy vice president, Buganda, Erias Lukwago, voiced their concerns to the party leadership over the unknown source of huge sums of money that had since flowed into the party.
These alleged that this money was from President Museveni, the chairperson of the ruling political party, the National Resistance Movement (NRM).
They also alleged that both FDC party president Patrick Oboi Amuriat and secretary-general Nathan Nandala Mafabi wanted to sell the party to Museveni.
Both Mafabi and Amuriat also alleged that Ssemujju and Lukwago are only opposing them because "they prefer NUP, a Baganda political party, and want to merge FDC with it."
Much as both Ssemujju and Lukwago have since denied these allegations, it points to the challenge of tribalism that rose in the 1960s and 70s. This was attributed to multiparty politics and led to the baning of political parties from participating in national elections in order to curb sectarianism in the country.
The conflict in FDC has since caused a rift among party members and is threatening the survival of the party as the likelihood of a split is apparent.
The Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) and the Democratic Party (DP), both considered historical parties, are now a shadow of their former selves and are now perceived as parties of the NRM.
The future of most political parties, especially those in opposition, is now bleak given that most find themselves grappling with these challenges.
Ugandans who want to see a democratic country should stand with these parties and support them as much as they can. This could include financial support in terms of donations, actively participating in their activities, and suggesting new ideas on how to grow them, among others.
Political parties need to be saved from the hands of death.