Who is Apollo Yeri Ofwono? Flash Uganda Media looks at his biography, age, wife, family, tribe, relationship with Emmanuel Ofwono, Katikiro Charles Peter Mayiga, Samantha Nanziri, Sanjay Tanna, early life and education of the current Member of Parliament representing Tororo Municipality in Uganda.
Apollo Ofwono also known as Apollo Yeri Ofwono is a famous Ugandan politician. He is the current Member of Parliament representing Tororo Municipality in Tororo District.
Apollo Ofwono is a member of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) political party.
Early life and Education
Apollo Ofwono was born on April 14, 1962, in Tororo District, Eastern Uganda. He is a Christian belonging to the Anglican faith.
Ofwono is the father to Emmanuel Ofwono who got married to Katikiro Charles Peter Mayiga’s daughter Samantha Nanziri in October 2021.
Apollo Ofwono graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Makerere University Business School.
Career and Professional Work Experience
Apollo Ofwono’s first attempt at politics was in 2001 when he contested as Tororo Municipality MP with the full support of the late Oloka’pila who mentored him and financially supported all his campaigns.
His next attempt in 2006 and 2011 was futile as he lost both elections to Sanjay Tanna an independent candidate.
In October 2015, Apollo Ofwono Yeri beat his rival, Tefro Brian Ochieng as the NRM party’s flag bearer for Tororo Municipality for the 2016 General elections.
He was also declared the winner with 7, 149 votes against the incumbent Member of Parliament Sanjay Tanna’s 7045 votes.
In the 2021 General elections, Apollo Ofwono garnered 5,169 votes and won the election against eight other candidates for Member of Parliament of Tororo Municipality.
Achievements and Awards
Apollo Yeri Ofwono is a member of the Natural Recourses and Appointments committee. He is the Tororo district chairman of the ruling National Resistance Movement party.
Apollo Ofwono is the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Forum on Gender and Culture which was launched on Tuesday, 31 January 2023 with an agenda to support the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development in budgeting and legislation roles.
Controversies
Apollo Ofwono lost to incumbent MP Sanjay Tanna in his first bid for the Tororo District seat in the Ugandan Parliament in 2006. Appalled, Ofwono contested the election’s results, claiming that his opponent had bought votes and recruited unregistered voters to support him.
He was required to pay 45 million shillings in court costs after losing the case in court on the ruling that there was no evidence. He didn’t pay the fee until 2009 when he was taken into custody by the court on its directive.
The State Minister for Labor by then Emmanuel Otala however intervened and he was released on bond.
For the next elections of 2011, Apollo Ofwono again lost to Sanjay Tanna and again filed a petition to the court.
Sanjay Tanna, according to Ofwono, committed electoral offences by buying votes, lacked the necessary academic credentials to serve in parliament, and used defamatory language against his opponents.
However, the court dismissed this petition on grounds of lack of enough evidence but both Ofwono and Tanna were made to meet the costs of the suit for purposes of harmonious co-existence.
The incumbent Member of Parliament Sanjay Tanna disputed Apollo Yeri Ofwono’s win in the 2016 elections making Tororo Chief Magistrate Esther Nakadama Mubiru order for a recount of the votes.
Through his attorney, Yusufu Mutembuli and Company Advocates, Sanjay Tanna had claimed that presiding officers and polling assistants at several polling places invalidated the majority of his votes, giving the election to his rival.
However, Ofwono successfully contested the vote recount in court on the basis that the ballot boxes held by the Electoral Commission had been tampered with. Hence, the chief magistrate’s court in Tororo halted the anticipated vote recount for the Tororo Municipality parliamentary seat.
At a discussion hosted by East FM at the Hotel Meritoria in December 2020, incumbent MP Ofwono gave his potential opponents for his seat the assurance that they shouldn’t think of getting close to the August House if they aren’t financially stable in preparation for the 2021 General Elections.
Ofwono made his statement in response to one candidate, Yusuf Asente, who accused him of using his position to amass a fortune rather than give his supporters financial security.
Ofwono retorted that his wealth was intended to motivate his supporters. He asserted that in order to be a successful leader, a person must set an example by earning the respect of others.
His opponents were enraged by this speech and accused him of deceiving the public into not supporting them by disparaging the poor.
Editor’s Note: Please contact flashugnews@gmail.com if you find any of the content to be inaccurate or outdated.
