Tension and fear gripped Bukedea District on Wednesday after Florence Asio, the National Unity Platform (NUP) candidate for Woman Member of Parliament, went missing just hours before her scheduled nomination. Her disappearance came on the same day the Speaker of Parliament, Anita Among, was declared unopposed a coincidence that has sparked outrage, sorrow, and renewed debate over political intimidation in Uganda’s elections.

According to NUP president Robert Kyagulanyi, widely known as Bobi Wine, Asio and her campaign team were traveling from Soroti to Bukedea when they suddenly went silent. “Our candidate, Asio Florence, has gone missing together with her colleagues. Their phones are off, and their families are desperately looking for them,” Kyagulanyi said in a somber statement.

He said another party member, Mercy Marion Alupo, who had been waiting at the Bukedea Electoral Commission offices to receive Asio, also went missing later in the day. “We can only hope they are safe,” he added.

Family members say they are living in fear and confusion. “Florence is a brave woman who only wanted to serve her people,” a relative told reporters. “We don’t know where she is or who took her.”

Kyagulanyi revealed that Asio had recently expressed fear for her safety after reporting that armed men had stormed her home, abducted her mother and siblings, and warned her to withdraw from the race. “She told us they were threatening her family to force her out,” Kyagulanyi said, accusing Speaker Among of using state power to silence challengers.

Earlier, three other women Mercy Alupo (NUP), Norma Susan Otai (FDC), and Akol Hellen Odeke (Independent) had been controversially removed from the race by local tribunals, leaving Among as the only remaining candidate. The Electoral Commission later confirmed her as unopposed.

Meanwhile, in western Uganda, Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa was also declared unopposed for Ruhinda North County in Mitooma District. He thanked his constituents “for their overwhelming confidence and support.”

By press time, neither the Electoral Commission nor the Uganda Police had commented on Asio’s disappearance, leaving Bukedea residents anxious and demanding answers.