By Our Reporter 

Emmanuel Lumala Dombo, the Director of Information and Publicity for the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party, has defended the role of elected leaders in representing their communities, saying they have a responsibility to speak out, offer guidance and seek intervention when necessary.

In a post on his X account, Dombo said elected leaders are mandated to speak for their people, guide them, counsel them and, at times, represent their interests before other authorities.

He noted that in fulfilling these responsibilities, leaders may seek the intervention of traditional and spiritual leaders, pray for divine wisdom or appeal to other leaders for mercy.

"Elected leaders have a duty to speak for their people, guide them, counsel them, & at times represent them," Dombo wrote.

His remarks come amid growing debate over the security situation in the Teso sub-region following the arrest of retired Lieutenant General Peter Elwelu, with some regional leaders and politicians raising concerns about the circumstances surrounding the arrest.

The comments also come after Daudi Kabanda, the Executive Secretary in the Office of the PLU National Chairman and Member of Parliament for Kasambya County, criticised Teso leaders for what he described as politicising Elwelu's arrest.

In a recent post on X, Kabanda argued that Elwelu was not the first senior military officer to be arrested, citing former military and security figures, including David Sejusa, Henry Tumukunde, Kale Kayihura, Birungi, Nabaasa and Namanya, among others.

Kabanda questioned why Elwelu's arrest had attracted what he described as heightened regional reactions, arguing that previous arrests of senior officers had not prompted similar responses from their respective regions.

He further warned that attempts to incite the public or introduce sectarian considerations would not help address the matter, adding that some people could be withholding information.

Kabanda's position has been followed by his announcement that the PLU Parliamentary Caucus will hold a press conference at Parliament on Monday, November 9, 2026, to address the security situation in Teso and what the caucus describes as political interference in security matters.

Although Dombo did not directly mention Elwelu or Kabanda in his post, his remarks have emerged amid the ongoing disagreement over how elected leaders should respond to security concerns affecting their communities.

The developments have brought renewed attention to the relationship between political representation, community interests and the handling of security matters, particularly when concerns arise over the arrest or treatment of prominent individuals from a particular region.