Kamuli Municipality Member of Parliament (MP) Hajjat Rehema Watongola is dead. Watongola succumbed to the COVID-19 infection from Mulago National Referral Hospital on Saturday morning where she had been admitted, the Ministry of Health has confirmed.
Watongola becomes the second MP to succumb to the virus after Pallisa District Woman MP, Faith Alupo who passed on in September.
The deceased’s husband Badiru Watongola, who doubles as the Kamuli Municipality NRM chairperson said the legislator was admitted with breathing difficulties.
Watongola’s brother known as Sam Mubialiwo succumbed to COVID-19 on Thursday last week in the Intensive Care Unit at Jinja Regional referral hospital.
In 2017, the late Watongola took the Kamuli Municipality parliamentary seat beating four other candidates including Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) flag-bearer, Proscovia Salaamu Musumba.
She garnered 8,726 beating her main rival, Musumba with a margin of close to three thousand votes.
Musumba, whose petition challenging Watongola’s victory in February 2016 was the reason for the by-election, garnered 5778 votes.
Watongola, had lost the Kamuli Municipality National Resistance Movement primaries held in August this year to Mastula Namatovu and claimed that mercenaries from the National Unity Platform influenced the polls.
She proceeded and was nominated as an independent candidate for the 2021 General elections
