KAMPALA – The National Union Platform (NUP) party led by Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, has said it is not ready to relinquish the red colour on its party symbol and urged all the aggrieved to go to court.
NUP spokesperson Joel Ssenyonyi said their party constitution provides for three colours; red, white and navy blue, which he said they are free to use as per the laws of the land.
“The NUP party constitution provides for three colours; colour red, colour while and colour navy blue. The EC are the supervisors of political parties like ours and they have our constitution well stamped and in their custody with all the three colours. They’ve never said no to that,” he said.
His remarks come a day after EC chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama urged NUP to drop the use of red colour, arguing that it has been gazetted for UPC party.
However, Ssenyonyi said the UPC party constitution provides for three colours: red, blue and black, and nowhere does it talk about dominant colour being red.
“As it stands, we are using our three colours because we are not using some alien colours that are not in our constitution,” he added.
On Monday, Justice Byabakama said that the NUP, formerly registered as National Unity, Reconciliation and Development Party, had white and blue as its primary colours and although the request to change its name was allowed, the one pertaining to colours was not approved.
On his part, UPC president Jimmy Akena says: “Regulations are in place to help manage the situation. NUP has been in existence; the symbol of NUP was already gazetted. They must think about it, UPC will not give up on colour red.”