Museveni dragged into Kabanda, Rwabwogo fight

• Kabanda claimed Rwabwogo asked President Museveni to publicly denounce him.

• He accused Rwabwogo of corruption and land grabbing while vowing not to back down.

• The row follows weeks of public exchanges between the two senior NRM-linked figures.

• The dispute has reportedly prompted Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba to caution Kabanda against targeting Rwabwogo.

President Yoweri Museveni has been drawn into the escalating feud between Kasambya County MP Daudi Kabanda and presidential adviser Odrek Rwabwogo, who is also the president’s son-in-law.

Kabanda last night came out to claim that Mr Rwabwogo had reported him directly to the president over his social media posts.

Kabanda alleged that Rwabwogo presented some of his posts to Museveni and asked the President to publicly distance himself from him by branding him a "crook" to damage his credibility among voters.

“I have reliably been informed that Rwaboogo went to the President with a number of my tweets about him and asked him to restrain me from speaking about him or Condemn me publicly by referring to me as a CROOK so that I can maybe lose credibility in the society and in my Constituency,” he wrote.

Kabanda challenged the President to instead question Rwabwogo over allegations of corruption and land grabbing. 

He argued that political attacks had never stopped determined leaders, citing past criticism directed at Museveni during his rise to power.

He also declared that only "death" would stop him from speaking against what he described as "thieves like him."

“What can actually stop me from talking about the thieves like him is DEATH nothing else. Kabanda whom he wants to refer to as a CROOK actually got for NRM 71% in Mubende with zero budget from NRM.”

The latest exchange follows weeks of public attacks by Kabanda against the chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee on Exports and Industrial Development.

Earlier this month, Kabanda described Rwabwogo as a "serious enemy" after learning that he had visited veteran journalist Timothy Kalyegira at Luzira Prison. 

He questioned Rwabwogo's reasons for the visit and suggested he could have been linked to criticism directed at Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU) figures.

Kabanda has also accused Rwabwogo of influencing criticism of Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba by members of the United States Congress and has repeatedly portrayed him as an opponent of the PLU's agenda.

Rwabwogo has not addressed Kabanda directly. Instead, he has used recent public speeches and videos to call for action against corruption, election malpractice and abuse of power. 

He has also urged leaders to stop internal divisions and dishonesty, warning that such behaviour threatens Uganda's future.

He has also spoken about media freedom and the need to reform the broader NRM, saying the party should be protected from what he described as unhealthy practices.

The dispute has reportedly attracted the attention of Gen Muhoozi, who is said to have cautioned Kabanda against attacking Rwabwogo, who is married to Museveni's daughter, Patience Museveni Rwabwogo.