Kassiano Wadri who is in Gulu prison on charges of treason was elected Arua Municipality MP seven days ago in an election marred by violence that left many injured, property vandalized and one person shot dead.
Wadri opted to contest as an independent candidate after his party FDC rejected him as the official flagbearer.
Efforts to convince him to rally behind the party were unsuccessful.
The FDC shunned Wadri on grounds that he had become very unpopular and therefore the people of Arua would never vote him.
The FDC survey was based on 2016 elections which he lost miserably to Moses Agundru a member of the ruling party.
The two political heavy weights had contested for Terego West County in Arua District.
It remained unclear how a man of Wadri’s stature would lose an election given his past experience, score card and his political affiliation.
Wadri had earned a name as a no nonsense legislator especially at a time he chaired Public Accounts Committee (PAC) in Parliament.
His fame rose in 2012- 2013 when he handled the OPM scandal in Prime Minister’s office in which shs 50 billion was misappropriated.
How again would a person of Kassiano Wadri lose an election, many people asked.
While mourning fallen Arua Municipality MP Ibrahim Abiriga, Museveni briefly narrated a story how he managed to bury Wadri’s rising political career.
At a time Museveni ‘mocked’ Wadri he was purely grassing.
Museveni again told mourners that he fought Wadri using Minister Kania.
But, this website understands another version of Museveni- Wadri story at a time the latter served as Terogo County legislator.
Shs 300 million
The FDC leadership is tasked with appointing parliamentary shadow cabinet by the virtue of its numerical strength.
The party leadership under Maj Gen Mugisha Muntu then dropped Wadri as PAC chairman in 2014 and was replaced with Alice Alaso.
He had scored politically because his committee had performed very well.
Wadri positioned himself as chairman who can’t be compromised but also when chairing that committee, the slot comes with quite a lot of privileges like travels, allowances, and many more.
When he was replaced, Wadri slowly began grassing.
It is against this backdrop that he cut a deal with NRM Secretary General Justine Kasule Lumumba who then delivered him to President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni at State House Entebbe.
Those privy to this 2015 meeting as the nation prepared for 2016 general election, Wadri assured Museveni that he wouldn’t defect from his party FDC but he would simply become passive member which he did after.
He was thus facilitated with shs 300 million to clear his debts and also run his campaign as he sought a re-election.
He was later defeated by Agundru and NRM reclaimed Terego west county.
Wadri has however bounced back from a different constituency, Arua Municipality after two years.
His supporters are observing how he will play his cards since he stood as an independent candidate.
