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Former Kira Municipality Member of Parliament Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda has admitted that he was wrong in his earlier criticism of National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, popularly known as Bobi Wine, over his decision to leave Uganda.
Ssemujju, who is currently living in exile, said he initially believed Bobi Wine should have remained in the country and continued fighting politically from within Uganda.
However, he said his opinion has changed after witnessing developments that convinced him that Kyagulanyi made the right decision by leaving the country.
“When Hon Kyagulanyi went into exile, I thought he should have stayed and fought. But my thinking has now changed. He was very right to go,” Ssemujju said.
The former legislator, who also serves as Secretary General of the People’s Front for Freedom (PFF), explained that his earlier position was based on the belief that opposition leaders should remain inside the country to challenge the government.
Ssemujju said he now views the situation differently, arguing that the security environment has changed in ways that were not clear to him at the time Bobi Wine left Uganda.
He said he had judged Kyagulanyi’s decision using the same reasoning that some opposition figures had previously applied when advising other political challengers to remain and continue their struggles from within the country.
Ssemujju compared the situation to the early years of Dr Kizza Besigye’s opposition against President Yoweri Museveni.
He recalled that when Besigye began challenging Museveni’s leadership in 2000, some senior government figures reportedly attempted to convince him to abandon his political confrontation.
“Dr Kizza Besigye started opposing President Museveni in November 2000. Some of the people who later joined him such as Hon Amanya Mushega and Gen Mugisha Muntu held a meeting at the Ministry of Public Service,” Ssemujju said.
According to Ssemujju, the meeting was intended to persuade Besigye to stop opposing Museveni because some people believed the president was serving his final term in office.
He said his own view about Bobi Wine’s exile was influenced by similar assumptions that political battles could be better handled from within Uganda.
However, Ssemujju said events that followed changed his perspective and made him reconsider his earlier criticism.
“Same to me. That was my thinking when Hon fled to exile. But it has now changed because at that time, I had not seen Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba arrest and torture a person as he publicly celebrates,” he said.
Ssemujju, who left Uganda in June this year, said he fled the country to avoid possible arrest, adding that his experience changed how he viewed political safety and opposition activities.
He argued that Bobi Wine had access to information and security assessments that other opposition figures did not have when he decided to leave Uganda.
“By the time Hon Kyagulanyi fled the country, he had an assessment that we didn’t have. We thought we would go ahead with the struggle in Uganda. Right now, my thinking has changed. It is no different from his,” Ssemujju said.
Before leaving Uganda, Ssemujju had previously criticised Bobi Wine’s leadership approach, saying the NUP leader had the ability to lead a political party but questioned his readiness to govern a country.
His latest comments mark a change in his position and have drawn attention among opposition supporters and political observers.
Following Ssemujju’s remarks, Bobi Wine, who is currently outside Uganda, responded by sharing a quote attributed to Malcolm X on social media.
“Don’t be so quick to judge a man simply because he doesn’t know what you know, or think the way you think. Remember, there was a time when you didn’t know what you know today,” the message read.
The exchange between the two opposition figures has sparked fresh debate about political exile, leadership decisions and the challenges faced by opposition leaders in Uganda.
Ssemujju’s admission has also highlighted the difficult choices opposition politicians face when balancing the need to remain politically active and concerns about personal security.
The remarks continue to fuel discussions about the future of Uganda’s opposition movement and the strategies leaders use in confronting political challenges.
