As we head into 2026, Uganda stands at the crossroads once again. The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), once the banner of robust opposition in the country, and once the hammer meant to crack the granite of Museveni’s rule, has finally delivered unto us its chosen standard bearer for 2026. And lo and behold, it is none other than Nathan Nandala Mafabi, the accountant, parliamentarian, and calculator in human form.
Mafabi does not come promising liberation, nor even governance in its full totality. He comes instead promising that the numbers will finally add up. His campaign slogan, “Fixing the Economy; Money in Our Pockets.” might as well be written in ledger ink. If this is the grand revolutionary call, then the revolution has been privatized, accounted for, and filed away.
The Economics Candidate
Make no mistake: Mafabi is brilliant in his lane. His parliamentary record as Chair of the Public Accounts Committee and his ties to World Bank and IMF platforms show a man who can dissect a budget with surgical precision. He pledges 10 percent of the national budget to agriculture, “100 million shillings per village,” regional industrial zones, a war against procurement waste and solemn vows that corruption shall vanish once the ledgers are finally squared. He can recite fiscal reforms the way a priest recites catechism.
And the crowd cheers, because in a country where the economy has squeezed some into despair, who would not cheer for someone promising “money in our pockets”? To a market vendor or boda rider, the words sound like salvation.
But here lies the tragic reality, Mafabi campaigns as though Uganda is a giant cooperative society in need of an honest treasurer, when in fact Uganda is a republic in need of a commander-in-chief.
The President Who Forgot the Rest of the Nation.
A president governs all. That cuts across sectors like health, education, security, diplomacy, social welfare, and the intricate art of holding the state together. Yet Mafabi’s manifesto reads like a budget memo that accidentally wandered onto the campaign trail. On health, he offers platitudes about funding hospitals but little by way of concrete policy on the chronic crises like understaffed facilities, underpaid medical workers, cancer machines that break down as fast as they are commissioned, or the endless flight of doctors to the diaspora.
On education, his campaign is virtually mute. Uganda’s classrooms are crumbling, teachers underpaid, dropout rates skyrocketing, and the curriculum struggling to prepare students for modern economies. Yet from Mafabi, we hear no vision of how to rescue the next generation from mediocrity. His silence on universities, vocational training, or even digital education is deafening. Perhaps he assumes children will learn by osmosis once each village receives its 100 million shillings.
On infrastructure beyond vague mentions of energy and procurement? Silence. On environmental policy in an era of climate crisis and floods displacing communities? Silence. On governance reforms beyond “fight corruption”? Silence.
That is why it is perplexing to hear him say that “I come as a bridge to peacefully carry Ugandans from the current political, social, and economic hopelessness to a country we can all be proud of.”
It is as though Mafabi stood before the vast canvas of Uganda’s challenges and decided to paint only the corner labelled “Economy,” leaving the rest of the canvas a blank void.
Security and Foreign Policy: Uganda Is Not a Spreadsheet.
Security, of course, is a vital sector. The ADF continues its terror in eastern DRC, linked to the Islamic State and responsible for massacres. Al-Shabaab still rattles in the Horn, while regional instability remains a constant threat. These issues demand a head of state who can fuse military strategy, intelligence reform, diplomacy with neighbours, and international partnerships.
Yet Mafabi’s security chapter seems written by an intern with vague promises of accountability and reform, no doctrine, no plan, no strategy. Will insurgents disarm because Mafabi balanced the books? Will Kampala be safe because the procurement forms are finally filled in carbon copy? The enemy that surrounds us on all fronts of our borders will not surrender to a well-structured Excel sheet.
The FDC’s Decline From Tiger to Paper Cat.
But perhaps we should not judge Mafabi too harshly. His thin manifesto reflects the reality of the party that produced him. The FDC, once the fierce challenger of Museveni’s rule under Dr. Kizza Besigye, has since been consumed by internal turmoil. Leadership wrangles, factionalism, and defections have left it hollow. By 2025, what remains is a once-mighty party reduced to offering up its accountant as a would-be president, basically, a treasurer dressed in presidential robes.
It is not merely that Mafabi is obsessed with economics; it is that the FDC itself has lost the broad vision that a true opposition must wield. They cannot provide a holistic national plan because they themselves are no longer a holistic national movement.
Compare this decline with the Democratic Party (DP). Recognizing their waning influence, the DP struck a deal with the ruling NRM. Their leader, Norbert Mao, now serves as Minister of Justice, with influence and responsibility, shaping the nation from within rather than shouting impotently from outside. Whatever one thinks of that deal, at least it gave DP relevance and a seat at the table.
“The constitution of DP and the cooperation agreement (with the president) are not mutually exclusive. I signed it as president of DP and will continue exercising my duty as DP president.” said the Minister.
FDC, meanwhile, clings to the fantasy of capturing the State House with a spreadsheet and a slogan.
The Miscasting of Nandala Mafabi.
In truth, Uganda would benefit from Mafabi’s skills, just not in the presidency. He would be a formidable Minister of Finance, able to bring discipline to budgets, eliminate corruption in procurement, and reallocate resources more efficiently. He might even serve brilliantly as Governor of the Bank of Uganda, safeguarding monetary stability with his accountant’s zeal.
But as President? Imagine the absurdity. Museveni, with decades of experience juggling wars, diplomacy, and statecraft, handing over the reins to a man whose campaign can be summarized as Trust me, I’ve seen the budget. The comparison is laughable. Museveni has at least built an “all-cutting across plan,” however controversial, that touches every sector. Mafabi has built a pie chart.
Uganda’s presidency is not an accounting exercise. It is the nerve center of national survival. And unless Mafabi publishes a real multi-sectoral agenda covering health, education, security, foreign policy, and governance, then he is not running for president. He is running for Chief Accountant of the Republic.
The President Uganda Does Not Need.
Nathan Nandala Mafabi is a man of numbers, not of nations. He is the right man in the wrong race. Uganda needs his skills, but not in the State House. He should, with humility, ask President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to deploy him where he can excel, at the Ministry of Finance or at the Bank of Uganda. There, Mafabi would be a hero of balance sheets, a scourge of corruption, a master of fiscal discipline.
As for the presidency, it demands more. It requires a vision for health, for education, for security, for foreign relations, for the future of Uganda’s children. On that test, Mafabi offers silence wrapped in spreadsheets. The FDC, weakened and fragmented, offers him because it can offer nobody better.
Uganda, however, deserves better than an accountant in the State House. To elevate Mafabi to the presidency would be like asking a cashier to command an army, or a banker to negotiate peace at gunpoint. The books may balance, but the nation would burn.