Protecting the Gains! CLASI President Counsel Twinobusingye Severino Rallies Citizens to Prioritize Peace Ahead of Tomorrow’s Uganda Presidential Election

Kanungu, Uganda – East Africa / January, 2026.

The President of Catholic Lawyers’ Society International (CLASI), Counsel Severino Twinobusingye, has emphasized the need for Ugandans to prioritize peace and security as critical gains they must safeguard as they go to elect their President tomorrow.

The elections are due to take place tomorrow, January 15, 2026, countrywide, with voters expected to elect the President, Member of Parliament, and District Woman Representative.

Counsel Twinobusingye who also doubles as the Principal Legal Advisor to the Chief Coordinator of Operation Wealth Creation (OWC), as well as a Senior Presidential Adviser on National Defense, General Salim Saleh, made the remarks while appearing on Kikinzi FM, a local radio station in Kanungu district (Western Uganda).

He noted that the upcoming election is critical for the continuity of the prevailing national security, peace, and wealth.

“All the developments that we have experienced over so many years have been around under the leadership of President Museveni and have been as a result of Peace. The central message is the protection of the gains achieved under the current leadership. So, it is peace that matters more than anything else” he said.

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According to Counsel Twinobusingye, Peace is fundamental for everyone’s health, education, and stability. He explained that, whereas some people argue that one cannot eat peace, they forget that without it, wealth becomes a storm and disappears.

“To understand peace, one needs to experience war. If you have ever found yourself in a situation of war, that’s when you can appreciate what it means, because with peace, you can work and have money. But if bricks are flying over your head, bombs are all over the place, then that’s when you will realize how important peace is. Those who say without money in your pocket, there is no peace, do not understand the meaning of Peace. Peace enables people to plan and invest because the economic future is predictable. And so, the vote that we are going into is a vote of Peace,” He said.

He advised citizens on the message from the Office of the President, urging them to vote peacefully as the country is stable and the security situation is under control.

Regarding sectarianism, Counsel Twinobusingye strongly advised citizens against mixing religion and politics, emphasizing that politics is about the management of society and providing services like roads, hospitals, and schools.

He cited his personal childhood story of having to walk 14 kilometers every day to a Catholic school instead of attending a nearby Anglican school, attributing this to religious divisions at the time. He, therefore, urged voters to shun any leader who tells them to vote based on their church or mosque.

“Religion is a private matter between a human being and God. Otherwise, who knows the religion of the medicine we use? Is it Catholic, Protestant, or Muslim? It is just medicine. The National Resistance Movement (NRM) leadership is accommodative, all-embracing, and non-sectarian,” He rallied.

Twinobusingye also downplayed arguments by some individuals demanding the ruling NRM to leave power, having spent 40 years, saying such views are merely a marketing strategy by opponents who want to get into power.

He cautioned people against wasting their precious time at polling stations after casting their vote, under the guise of protecting their votes. He explained to the people the whole process, as it goes right from voting up to the declaration of results, emphasizing that whether voters remain at the polling station or not, it is irrelevant. He warned that the slogan encouraging people to ‘secure their vote’ after voting is only intended to promote violence.

“Once the ballot paper has been put in the ballot box, it will be removed and counted and recorded on the Declaration Form, entered in records, and what follows next is the announcement by the Electoral Commission. So, what does your waiting add to that exercise? You stand there for the whole day after voting. Why are you wasting time? Why don’t you go and do other things? Nobody should allow chaos. If you have finished voting, just go home, rest, and wait for what the Electoral Commission will say. The Electoral Commission is mandated to count, record, and announce the results; voters have no control over this process,” He guided.

Regarding the implementation of the Parish Development Model (PDM), Counsel Twinobusingye explained the importance of this program and urged the masses to shun whoever advocates for its dissolution. He said the program is a government system designed to ensure that it puts money into people’s pockets, especially the most vulnerable poor, who constitute about 36%.

He said OWC, under the guidance of the President and General Salim Saleh, has been instrumental in ensuring money from the PDM goes into people’s pockets.

“You can see when someone says that he’s going to close this, it means that he’s saying that this 36% people in Uganda should be completely left over and they remain in poverty. We are saying that under certain circumstances, they must be gotten out of poverty. We have tried, and we are determined to do that,” He said.