As Uganda prepares for parish-level youth elections on Monday, July 7, several youth leaders aligned to the National Unity Platform (NUP) in Mubende District are expressing fear over a "suspicious and unexplained" summons to a meeting allegedly organised by local ruling party officials.

According to the NUP youth leaders, village-level NRM leaders have been informing them of a meeting scheduled for Monday morning, just hours before polling begins.

"Many have approached us saying there is a meeting tomorrow morning and that free transport will be provided," said one NUP village youth leader.

Others suspect the meeting is a ploy to reduce NUP turnout in the elections.

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"We are still asking ourselves why they want to take us for a meeting yet tomorrow, Monday July 7, is election day. These NRM people want to hoodwink us because they know we have the majority support at the village level, and they fear we might take all parish positions again," another youth leader claimed.

Some of the NUP leaders also questioned how NRM officials accessed their phone numbers, alleging they have been receiving unsolicited calls pressuring them to attend the meeting.

"I received a call from a top NRM official here in Mubende telling me to accept attending the meeting. I gave him false hope, but little did he know that I am aware of all their tricks to reduce NUP votes tomorrow," one youth leader revealed.

"What we know is that here in South Division, we have the majority support, and they know we are going to beat them. In some villages, we won all the positions.

As we head into the parish-level elections, they are trying to reduce our numbers by luring us into false meetings," another youth leader added.

By press time, efforts to reach Twaha Mukomazi, the NRM spokesperson in Mubende District, were unsuccessful.