The Democratic Party (DP) has officially unveiled veteran journalist Eninu Edward as its flag bearer for the Kasilo County parliamentary race, setting the stage for a competitive election in the constituency.
Eninu brings to the political arena a journalism career spanning over a decade, with extensive experience covering Eastern and Northeastern Uganda. Before his political foray, he served for eight years as the Bureau Chief for both the Teso and Karamoja sub-regions for Uganda’s leading news agency, Uganda Radio Network (URN). He officially resigned from his journalism work in June of this year to focus fully on his political ambitions.
His career began in 2013 at Kyoga Veritas Radio in Soroti as a freelance reporter. He later moved to the Karamoja sub-region, where he worked as a news reporter and editor for several stations, including All Karamoja FM, the now-defunct Nenah FM, and most recently, Etoil A Karamoja in Kotido.
Eninu, who declared his intention in 2023 to challenge one of Parliament’s longest-serving members, Elijah Okupa, had until recently been conducting grassroots mobilization as an independent candidate. However, speculation about his party affiliation grew after he was seen in high-level discussions with DP officials, culminating in visits to the party’s headquarters in Kampala this past Tuesday and Wednesday. His online campaign posters have since been updated to feature the DP’s colours and logo.
When contacted for comment, Eninu confirmed that he has received the green light from the party leadership. “We’re waiting for the Secretary General to endorse our nomination after concluding with the requirements for nomination,” he said in an interview.
While the DP’s Secretary General, Dr. Gerald Sirwanda, was not available for a comment by the time of filing this story as he is currently in Arusha, officials at the party headquarters and local district leaders have confirmed that Eninu is the chosen candidate for Uganda’s oldest political party.
Eninu’s entry on the DP ticket reshapes the political landscape of the Kasilo County race. The incumbent, Elijah Okupa, remains in the race as an independent candidate, along with his long-time contenders James Peter Akol and Moses Edonu.
Other candidates vying for the seat include Peter Carlos Ebaiu of the Democratic Front, James Emaju of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), and Peter Paul Emaju of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party.