By Sam Muriisa
Kampala’s political corridors are awash with shockwaves following the declaration of Kaweesa Mahad as the ruling NRM’s flag bearer for the Kampala Lord Mayoral race—a victory now heavily tainted by swirling allegations of fraud, identity theft, and deep-seated electoral malpractice.
Mahad, whose meteoric rise in the primaries stunned many, claims he was once Kaweesa Solomon before allegedly converting to Islam and adopting his current name. Yet, insiders and whistleblowers maintain the two are entirely different individuals, with mounting evidence suggesting that Mahad is fraudulently parading academic credentials belonging to the original Kaweesa Solomon. The two Kaweesa’s below:
The discrepancies are glaring. Official records show Kaweesa Solomon was born on 2nd July 1986, whereas in a sworn affidavit, Kaweesa Mahad declares his date of birth as 5th December 1986—a gap that critics argue is irrefutable proof that the documents he tendered to the NRM are not his. Sources close to the party fear that, should the Electoral Commission scrutinize his credentials, Mahad could be barred from the national race altogether—rendering the NRM’s declaration an exercise in futility.
The controversy doesn’t end there. Party insiders allege Mahad never legitimately won the primaries but rather leveraged his influence within Rubaga and engaged in outright corruption to snatch victory from front-runner Kizito Moses. Eyebrows were further raised when Rubaga NRM registrar Ronald Kato hastily pronounced Mahad the winner—yet the NRM’s own electoral commission, according to impeccable sources, holds no signed declaration forms substantiating the result.
Now, the very registrars accused of accepting bribes to tip the scales in Mahad’s favour are reportedly gripped by fear, uncertain how to defend his contested win in the face of damning leaks. In fact, party hawks have whispered to this writer that the matter has already escalated to the NRM tribunal, where the murky affair will be laid bare—potentially resulting in the victory being handed to either Kizito Moses or Musoke Thadeus, the influential KACITA chairman, both of whom trailed closely in these primaries.
As the scandal gathers pace, the stakes for the NRM could not be higher: the ruling party risks not only losing its Kampala mayoral ticket but also facing a fresh storm of public outrage over allegations of systemic electoral rot.