The National Resistance Movement (NRM) has fired back at National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, over his recent criticism of the Parish Development Model (PDM), with party spokesperson Emmanuel Dombo warning that voters will not support leaders who threaten to abolish livelihood programs.
Speaking in Lira on Monday, Dombo dismissed Kyagulanyi’s pledge to scrap the PDM if elected, describing the opposition leader’s stance as out of touch with the needs of ordinary Ugandans.
“The voters will respond to him at the ballot,” Dombo said. “How do you scrap a program meant to uplift livelihoods? Members of Parliament are struggling to secure more PDM funds in Parliament — and someone wants to remove it from the peasants? That’s not how you transform a country.”
“Anyone who tries to abolish PDM will be abolished by the voters. They will choose leaders who bring development, not those who threaten to take it away,” he added.
Dombo’s comments come in direct response to remarks made by Kyagulanyi last week during his campaign tour of Luuka and Kaliro districts, where he questioned the effectiveness of the government’s multi-billion shilling initiative.
“A country doesn’t develop by simply giving handouts to everyone. We are going to abolish that program and half of that money will be invested in improving our education system,” Kyagulanyi told supporters.
“Museveni has put Shs1 trillion into PDM, but no one can point at how that money has improved anyone’s livelihood.”
The Parish Development Model, launched in 2022, is a government flagship program aimed at transitioning Ugandans from a subsistence economy to the money economy.
Each parish is allocated shs500 million to support income-generating activities such as agriculture.
While the NRM defends the initiative as a critical tool for rural transformation, the opposition has raised concerns about mismanagement, politicization, and lack of tangible impact in many areas.
Kyagulanyi’s remarks have sparked debate, particularly in rural regions where the PDM has been widely promoted by government officials as a pillar of President Yoweri Museveni’s development agenda.
Museveni has touted PDM as a vehicle that will ensure all Ugandans create wealth for themselves if they use the cash well.
With campaigns intensifying ahead of the 2026 general elections, the future of the Parish Development Model appears set to become a major campaign issue — drawing clear battle lines between the ruling party and opposition forces.
