By Collins Tanga, son of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Electoral Commission chairperson Dr. Tanga Odoi, has dismissed the party tribunal’s decision to nullify the NRM Youth League chairperson election, arguing that the ruling was based on “perceptions of bias” rather than evidence.
The tribunal canceled the election on grounds of conflict of interest, citing Dr. Odoi’s role in the process. However, Collins insisted that his father’s involvement was limited to declaring results, as he does for other candidates, and did not extend to voting, tallying, or influencing the outcome.
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“There is a difference between the perception of bias and proven bias, and I don’t like it. It hurts my feelings and the will of thousands of youth in this country for you to cancel an election on the basis of speculation,” Collins said during a press briefing.
He criticized the tribunal for what he described as contradictory reasoning, noting that while it dismissed audio and video evidence presented during the hearing as “incomplete and inconclusive,” it still went ahead to overturn the results. “If they can claim that there were unlawful vote additions, from where? Which votes? What names? The ruling is inconsistent,” he charged.
Collins also accused one of his opponents of misleading the public by spreading unverified claims, including allegations that 400 votes were fraudulently added from Makerere University. “Where did they come from? Who are they? What were their names? The tribunal ruled on mere hearsay with no evidential value,” he said.
Despite expressing gratitude to the NRM National Chairman for steering the electoral process and to the tribunal for its timely ruling, Collins said he “vehemently disagreed” with the outcome, maintaining that the will of the youth should be respected.
The dispute marks the latest controversy in the NRM’s internal elections, underscoring rising tensions within the ruling party as youth leaders jostle for influence ahead of the 2025 general elections.
