GIDEOT T
Jacklyn Jolly Tukamushaba, the current Deputy President of the National Unity Platform (NUP) in charge of Western Uganda, was once an unknown figure in national politics. But in 2021, everything changed when she was abducted and held in military custody for several months—a life-altering experience that catapulted her into the political spotlight.
Born in Kigara B Village, Kamwezi Subcounty, Rukiga District, Tukamushaba is a seasoned accountant and humanitarian whose journey took her from Kamwezi Primary School to Makerere University for a Bachelor of Commerce and finally to Uganda Martyrs University, Nkozi, where she completed her MBA.
Her ordeal behind bars, which she describes as an “awakening call,” awakened a deeper sense of political consciousness.
“I used to imagine that as a law-abiding citizen, I would never be behind bars,” she recalls. “From then, I knew advocacy is not served on a silver plate.”
Tukamushaba’s experience in detention humanized the struggle for justice in her eyes. “Interacting with fellow prisoners, some of them soldiers, made me realize the necessity to put a brick on this country,” she says.
A devout Christian shaped by years of work with humanitarian organizations, Tukamushaba believes politics can be approached with a civil society and faith-based lens. Her service at World Vision (2001–2015) and her current role with Community Efforts for Child Empowerment, supported by ChildFund, speak volumes of her commitment to vulnerable communities.
In a region long dominated by the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), Tukamushaba’s rise is not just symbolic—it is seismic. She steps into the shoes of the late Jolly Mugisha, a fearless gender activist from Mbarara, bringing a softer but equally determined approach to resistance politics.
Even before her political awakening, Tukamushaba empowered youth and women, distributed scholastic materials to needy children, rewarded outstanding teachers, and supported skills development for the unemployed.
Those who shared prison cells with her remember her fondly.
“She gave us hope, told us stories, and poured her heart out to everyone,” says a former cellmate who preferred to remain anonymous.
Now aspiring to become Rukiga Woman Member of Parliament, Tukamushaba continues to build momentum across the Kigezi subregion. Her goal is simple: to blend democracy with compassion and restore dignity through people-centered leadership.
“If true democracy can be given a chance,” she says, “leadership wouldn’t be this serious—because systems would be working.”
From cell walls to campaign trails, Jacklyn Tukamushaba is living proof that adversity can birth leaders—and that even in silence, resilience speaks.
