Opposition Chief Whip Ssemujju provoking Besigye supporters just like Mwenda!

There are just some days, the true colors of some people appear, the real reason and the double-edged sword comes into play. There are times when the grandeur of support dwindles away like a dot-com bubble. It is this time and this sort of attacks within own party shouldn’t exist. Apparently it do, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), has been a party where the different leaders has discussed matters and followed protocol. Also, ever since Reform Agenda of early 2000s the leadership has changed and other deserters from National Resistance Movement has come into the fold.

It has been the strongest opposition party because of how the internal party organization has been built, the trust between the aides of leaders and the members. This has been an element of a party structure that has been done with grass-root work and steady campaigning. The proof of being different and also wanting a possible peaceful change from the Museveni era. That has not happen, because of the oppression and the constant rigging. Also, the control of the army. Therefore, you can wonder why Besigye who was part of the foundation and creator of FDC are no under-fire from his own. That also sounding like Mwenda, who has become the giant commentator who really despises him. I wouldn’t expect this sort of words form someone in the FDC NEC, but everything is allowed in politics, I guess.

Ibrahim Nganda Ssemujju on the 16^th August 2017:

“That is how many FDCs, including sophisticated ones like Musumba, viewed anyone who dared contest against Besigye. This is because Besigye is the most charismatic and selfless leader that the FDC either has inherited or produced. He is nearly more popular than the party. Contesting against him is almost criminal, punishable by isolation and other social boycotts. Yet that is exactly what motivated Muntu. I remember interviewing him while still working with The Observer and he feared FDC was making the same mistake senior leaders in the NRM made – not contesting against Museveni. Today, we still have people in FDC who think Col Besigye’s word is law and opposing it is a crime. Unfortunately, some of them are senior leaders. When you win over state power with that sort of mentality, I am sure you will be another criminal gang. Because Besigye’s mobilization and presidential campaign catchword was ‘defiance’, even those who have never chased a caterpillar in their lives are dismissing the rest of the party members as being “compliant”. Therefore, to them, this campaign for the FDC presidency is between defiance and compliance. The truth of the matter is that this campaign is between blind loyalists and those opposed to the idea” (Ssemujju, 2017).

Andrew Mwenda on the 7^th January 2017:

“Dr. Kizza Besigye is totally convinced that he has a large number of extremely loyal supporters armed with fanatical zeal to die for him. Besigye supporters are equally convinced that they have a leader willing to die for their cause. Both sides are involved in a game of deceit and deception and here is how. Besigye die hards are either cowards or hypocrites or both. While they make the loudest noise on how they are ready to die for him, they have done nothing (except for insulting critics on social media) to prove they are worthy of their claims. Each time Besigye goes to town, Kale Kayihura sends only eight (8) police men who pick Besigye like chicken, bundle him over a pickup truck and take him to police as these “ready-die-for-our-man” fanatics watch helplessly. For many months after the elections in February 2016, Kayihura kept a small police contingent at Besigye’s home of not more than 20 police officers. This “large mass” of “ready-to-die-for-our-man” people couldn’t pass this small poorly equipped force to rescue their hero. What kind of loyalty is this? Besigye is deluded to believe in his fanatics” (Andrew Mwenda, 07.01.2017).

Why did I take a Facebook article from Mwenda and this week attack piece from Ssemujju, it is because they use same sort of form to attack Besigye. It is special and unique. I never thought Ssemujju would use the same of tricks of the trade to address greatest Museveni nemesis Besigye. This is just weird. Because, Ssemujju has often been a man of reason, a man of sound judgment, but this time, I beg to differ.

Mwenda wrote this: “Dr. Kizza Besigye is totally convinced that he has a large number of extremely loyal supporters armed with fanatical zeal to die for him. Besigye supporters are equally convinced that they have a leader willing to die for their cause”. We can easily detect that anyone supporting Besigye has to be a die-hard supporter and dying for his cause. Because the support of Besigye has to be this hard, then seeing Ssemujju: “Today, we still have people in FDC who think Col Besigye’s word is law and opposing it is a crime. Unfortunately, some of them are senior leaders. When you win over state power with that sort of mentality, I am sure you will be another criminal gang. Because Besigye’s mobilization and presidential campaign catchword was ‘defiance’, even those who have never chased a caterpillar in their lives are dismissing the rest of the party members as being “compliant””. You can see that Ssemujju also calls Besigye radicals, as it is criminal not supporting him inside the FDC. That is the coded language used for, that the ones standing against Besigye is a “criminal gang”. This sort of addressing it, shows how he tries to make the decisions of Besigye into attack on the FDC Organization. That since Besigye has and wanted to be different than the NRM and the government itself. Since, if they gave way to the government, then there was no difference. If Besigye supporters really did boycott and stopped being part of state, the FDC would be legitimate opposition party. What is worrying is how he uses the same sort of words to address Besigye.

I would not expect that Ssemujju would write in a manner of Mwenda, but he did. It is right, Besigye is not perfect, but he has given way to other parts of the party, that has opened windows of more than just “hard-liners”. If it wasn’t so, the FDC NEC wouldn’t have the power and the ability to become a Shadow Government with Shadow Cabinet. Something Gen. Mugisha Muntu and Party President was voting for, while Besigye was in house-arrest and detained. If Ssemujju feared the prison and the oppression to the levels of Besigye, he might have turned a bit more radical himself. But safety of Parliament salaries and remuneration must surely put the ideology on the side.

It is a sad sight seeing Ssemujju turning this way, instead of actually being honest, being up-front for why he uses Besigye, who is not standing for the FDC Presidency and that Gen. Muntu is also an incumbent. Another “No-Change”. Since Gen. Muntu has been the Party President since 2012 after Besigye stepped down after being elected in 2005. So it is not like Besigye acts like he is bigger than FDC. That is lie, if it was so he would be like Museveni who is the Party President and the President of the Republic. Its a big difference there. So the rants against Besigye and his supporters should be futile. If not it is the Muntu fraction that fears the Besigye supporters will be behind his aide Byamugisha.

But it is with sadness, that a bright mind like Ssemujju are using rhetoric and tricks of Mwenda’s playbook. Sorry brother, you should know better and should also be wiser. You are FDC leader, not a NRM Stooge, right? You give respect to Besigye, but same time slams him. What are you trying to say, only the ones supporting Muntu and his side of the Party are the ones justified? Since Besigye garn different kind of support, but you will quickly embrace the man, when you need votes?

Is that your game as well, we have seen similar acts of late, when the chips are down the people leave the fold, but when the tide is rising the people come running back. Peace.

Reference:

Ssemujju, Ibrahim Nganda – ‘Why I am for Gen Muntu this time’ (16.08.2017) link: http://observer.ug/viewpoint/54408-why-i-am-for-gen-muntu-this-time.html

Opinion: Gen. Muntu wished back to NRM by Lumumba, is this another sign of disarming the opposition?

Well,  since the General Election of 2016, there been all sorts of play from the National Resistance Movement (NRM). Where the Opposition parties has either gotten ministerial posistions, EALA slots or even been detained. In ways of solidifying the NRM regime and their President for life – President Yoweri Museveni. Therefore the news that the NRM Secretary General Justine Lumumba wishes the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) President Gen. Mugisha Muntu, shows there some foul play in the cards. The deck is usually sealed and this cannot be the party line, as the talks of succession is a stalemate as long as Museveni breathes on planet earth. But take a brief look at the quotes from the Secretary General Lumumba.  

“Ms Justine Lumumba, who represented First Lady Janet Museveni at a belated Women’s Day celebrations for Ntungamo District at Rwenanura Primary School playground in Rweikiniro Sub-county, said: “Gen Muntu comes from this district, from Kitunga, I even know the village where he comes from, he is a sober man but he is walking with wrong company. Talk to him as his brothers that he comes back, if there are any grievances or anything that angered him, we can resolve it.” (…) “He is someone who can bring back the presidency here; he is such a good player in a bad team,” she added” (Rumanzi, 2017).

That Lumumba said the FDC was a bad team, was expected as she has that view of anyone who isn’t in the NRM Organization or the Movement. Therefore, that Gen. Muntu is around Lukwago and Besigye, means he is in a bad team. That Muntu is suddenly in the wrong company, means that he isn’t directly a part of the NRM. The right party and company is the NRM. That is if you get the deeper meaning of what NRM Secretary Lumumba was saying yesterday.

The good company is the 31 year old regime under President Museveni. It is not like the NRM has ever consider succession and using that as sweet gift to Gen. Muntu is most likely hogwash. As the Maj. Gen. Muhoozi Kainerubaga is most likely the next in line, if the President get his wish. Why else would he stop the Daily Monitor Press a few years back when the Gen. Sejusa tale leaked to the Press?

If the NRM would offer anything it would be a ministerial role, an ambassador and trading away the normative and legitimate leadership role of Gen. Muntu. Even if Gen. Muntu sometimes isn’t progressive, aggressively enough against the regime, who use all sorts of tricks to manipulate and control the Republic. Therefore this must been seen as a ploy to destabilize the FDC. As they hope the fraction and people loyal to Muntu would be swayed back to fold. Leave Besigye and the hardliners behind.

This would be typical way of offering a gift and then destroy the competition, as they know many of the FDC NEC and FDC leadership has no real need of either going back to the NRM or any wish to be back there. Since many of the FDC leaders has been former NRM, especially the ones who established the party and wanted a significant different party than the NRM.

So the Machiavellian approach by Secretary General Lumumba and the NRM, can be seen as a tactic to undermine the leader in the FDC; while offering and saying he would be fit to come after President Museveni. Like the NRM could offer anyone that, as the NRM couldn’t do that to their own like Amama Mbabazi or back-in-the-day Kizza Besigye. So why should Gen. Mugisha Muntu suddenly be good enough? Do the NRM think their citizens are generally stupid?

Peace!   

Reference:

Rumanzi, Perez – ‘Return Muntu to succeed Museveni, says Lumumba’ (17.04.2017) link:http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/Return-Muntu-to-succeed-Museveni–says-Lumumba/688334-3892216-h9ejj2/index.html

Uganda: Congratulations Hon. Chris Opoka-Okumu and Farewell Comrade Edward Segganyi (01.03.2017)

Opinion: EALA Parliamentary Election ended expectedly with massive win for former Movement MPs!

“Politics is like monkeys’ dance, if you do not want the tail of monkeys to touch you, you don’t join their dance” – Fred Mukasa Mbidde

Who thought this would be race for the opposition to get golden tickets to the Star-ship and fly-away to moon? Who thought that the Movement would act like gentlemen and give what is proper to the opposition, than you haven’t followed class or known the Movement’s way of doing business. Surely it was all fixed at the State House, the result was pre-fixed and the time it took in Parliament was made to make the charade look like an open bazaar, when it was a closed session for the chosen few that the kingpin had decided.

The ones winning were these ones:

“Mukasa Fred Mbidde (DP),

Akol Rose Okulu (NRM),

Mathias Kasamba (NRM),

Mary Mugyenyi (NRM),

Paul Musamali Mwasa (NRM),

Dennis Namara (NRM),

George Steven Odongo (NRM),

Christopher Opoka Okumu (UPC),

Suzan Nakawuki (Independent)” (New Vision, 28.02.2017).

The official results and votes don’t really matter, the winners out of the 49 candidates, two who was from Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) and none of them was elected. Surely, the FDC didn’t trade or give ways to the Movement. Therefore, the sudden resignation of Fred Mukasa Mbidde as Deputy President of Democratic Party (DP) before the EALA elections and he was even parts of the NRM EALA Primary Elections at the State House. Nevertheless, the man who was parts of the party that Museveni once a point in the time wanted to destroy dearly together with the Uganda People’s Congress, he has given one candidate from each party.

So who is this Christopher Opoka Okumu, the Nebbi representative who apparently was good enough for NRM MPs to vote for a another term for the UPC candidate, who wants James Akena to run for President in the next election, though that would alter the paradigm agreement done with Museveni. That is how the UPC-NRM agreement and why the UPC got even cabinet members this go around. Therefore, Museveni offers the UPC another slot in the EALA as thanks.

Dennis Namara is the former NRM Youth Chairman and Presidential Advisor for Youth, George Steven Odongo the former Resident District Commissioner (RDC) of Lira, Rosa Akol Okulu, the fomer Minister for Internal Affairs, Mary Mugyenyi, the former MP for Nyabushozi County and former State Minister for Animal Husbandry, Mathias Kasamba, the former Kakuuto MP, who lost in the NRM Primary in 2015.

Susan Nakawuki is a former UPC member of EALA, but this time around she went as an Independent candidate this time around. Last time she was representing UPC and as MP for Busiro MP, who even wasn’t believed to be an MP because of her dress-code in 2009, also been in trouble with the law in 2011. So after the issues, she still had capacity to get elected for EALA in 2012. So now she soon starts her second term in EALA as part of the Ugandan Delegation.

So the opposition that isn’t really opposition is the ones that one a slot to the EALA, because the ones been in EALA delegation there, are not rocking the boat or using the title to pressure anything vicious in the East Africa Community (EAC). Therefore, that Mbidde who was part of the celebration of the movement in Masindi and even parts of the Primary in the State House, the other UPC candidates are already spoiled by the wealth of EALA, that they do not want to cut their pay-check and lose their livelihood.

The others are old-timers and former leaders who certainly have traded favours with the president, as some of these lost out at the NRM Primaries in 2015. We the knowledge of the pay-checks coming with the service at the EALA, the price of getting the offer and lose out on being a MP for the NRM. Must seem decent for the loyalist that Museveni can count on to continue his trench-hold on all most of the seats anyway!

Like Nabilah Naggay Sempala wrote on a secret meeting in Parliament:

“The meeting scheduled at Parliamentary building for 10am according to sources at the Government Chief Whip’s office, is to strike a deal with the leaning independent Members of Parliament to vote for all the 6 NRM candidates. The NRM would also in turn vote an independent candidate who is yet to be agreed” (…) “In politics nothing is done until it is done. We need any potential ally at this time to comfortably secure victories today,” a source from NRM said. The independent members are 66 accounting for 16 percent of the total members and bigger than the combined opposition members” (…) “NRM has 6 candidates in the race including former ministers Rose Akol and Mary Mugenyi, former Government Chief Whip’s office Policy Analyst Paul Musamali, former RDC George Innocent Odongo and former NRM National Youth boss Denis Namara” (Nabilah Naggay Sempala, 27.02.2017).

So with this in mind that these members we’re mention in regards, plus the amount of fixed movement MPs there wasn’t hard to see how this would go. As well, the ones that one today are proven to be former losers in the Primary, therefore the meetings that was at the State House was making sure the loyal MPs of the past would get a secured livelihood after their days in Parliament. However, there are now also Youth League leader, RDC and Political Analysts that are now paid with a heavy salary in Arusha. You can just know that there have been a trade-off and Museveni offered it for creating no issues during the campaign of 2016. That has been visible as the NRM stalwarts was offered plenty. Expect other NRM former MPs to be hired as Envoys or even Ambassadors to the UAE or any other place with a Mission.

Enough of the mellow yellow brown envelope fellow! Peace.

Uganda: Letter – “FDC appeal to Members to Vote its Two Candidates for EALA” (28.02.2017)

My letter to Maj. Gen. Mugisha Muntu hope you enjoy your “fake peace”!

Dear Sir!

Retired Major. General. Mugisha Muntu, the current Party President of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), I write you because of the recent revealed letter between you and the Parliament speaker. This is not easy; you seem like a reasonable fellow and a man of honour.

Let me be honest with you, you seem tired of fighting and tired of hitting the wall. You are tired of the struggle and the work of dismantling the Movement. The Movement you once were on the rise in, before you started to build together with others the FDC. The FDC that is today a working machine with a NEC and other bodies that have through preliminary elections and other can bring justice to the ones who are running on FDC tickets.

We know through the grapevine that you we’re the one who was in-charge of reason why the FDC became the shadow government with Leader of Opposition Winnie Kiiza. That is when the party officially went away from the party of defiance and compliance with the ruling regime of the Movement. Mugisha Muntu was in-charge of that as Dr. Kizza Besigye was detained and was not the care-giver or getting to give reason to fight for his cause. This was the FDC abandoning Besigye in jail at Luzira after he had been airlifted and taken violently from Kampala.

Therefore the party sold their legitimacy and the ethical codes for a few silver and “a fake peace”, something Muntu himself could have said. This was an actual peace or token of respect of the party or their struggle during and after the ballot. That the party was under siege and the members were attacked was well-known, that dozens was detained without any warrants or court orders, was publically known. Therefore Moses Byamugyisha used days upon days to get FDC Youth free from illegal detention.

So that you gave up the struggle and gave a token of honour to the man that stole yet another election. Shows how much you can carry and what that is important. A Fake Peace is your price and your just behaviour. That you can stab the back of many supporters and give in, while many and still people are fighting forged alleged crimes, while you can eat supper and use party organization as you please.

This you did when you after a peaceful recent election all of a sudden sent a letter to the Parliament, which Ingrid Turinawe’s candidature for the EALA slot, was pulled back. Even when the recent election gave her a second place and also given her an opportunity to get nominated further in the Parliament. We don’t know the reasons before he actually tells the world for the sudden act of misbehaviour.

We don’t know why Maj. Gen. Mugisha Muntu suddenly decided on his own, to disown the FDC Primary EALA elections and pull another party members nomination to Parliament. We don’t know if he has traded with Jimmy Akena of Uganda People’s Congress (UPC), Norbert Mao of Democratic Party (DP) or even spoken nicely to Hon. Beti Kamya of Uganda Federal Alliance (UFA), to make sure the parties all get a slot in the EALA Ugandan Delegation in the next term there. If so he should be up-front and told the party organization not deviously send a letter to Parliament Speaker Rebecca Kadaga and hope the second nomination get cut in silence.

None of the nominations has happen in silence, neither has the nomination of Ingrid Turinawe, still the way of the wish of taking her chance away is a demonstration of not caring about inner-party elections. Than the Party President should have said from the get-go that the party only have one candidate for the elections! Period, bravo, congrats Florence and the rest good luck hunting after other positions!

That is what you should have done Honourable Muntu, instead you went the back-way and didn’t use proper methods, you have traded or done some backdoor agreements that is not known to anyone, but you and your closest allies. What they we’re and how they came about is for you to know. Even if not so, the act of aggression against Turinawe, is not a good look on him or his ways.

Maj. Gen. Mugisha Muntu, sometimes you sound like reasonable and well-thought true politician with a genuine heart, other times you are dying of ambition and wanting to rule with an iron fist. If you want the people to believe in the first character then they don’t need the giving in to the Movement, like you did with the Shadow Government nonsense, neither do they need the speedy change of heart and trying to disqualify Turinawe. It just seem benign and weak of man of your stature to this. Like a vendetta or a proof of distrust to the Besigye diehards. Who knows your motives if they are brown-envelopes or brownie points with the movement?

You could clarify and in-debt describe your trade or your reason for this act of volatile attempt to silence a fellow FDC member and her chance of a political platform on the outside of the Party Organization? Would you have done the same if it was Hon. Nathan-Nandala Mafabi?

What was your goal, was it create havoc and make sure your fraction get more power inside the party while Besigye is on a trip in Europe? I am wondering if your applying to secure a fake peace not only in the nation, but also inside the party you run.

I am wondering is your goal: to create a unstable peace and make sure there is a fake peace?

Peace!

Best regards.

Writer of MinBane

Opinion: NRM works on overtime to delegitimize the FDC though various media, since they are themselves an illegitimated regime!

There are running battles between the shadows of the Movement and the Forum for Democratic Change has been going on for a while. This has happen as Secretary General Nathan Nandala-Mafabi wrote this in the EALA Nomination letter to the 10^th Parliament wrote: “These clearly spell out the positions of the Ruling Party and the Official Opposition Party in the multiparty democracy. In regard to numerical strength. EAC Treaty is also clear on multiparty democracy”.

So now that the FDC is the official opposition party and not the winner of the General Election 2016, even though the rigging master Eng. Dr. Badru M. Kiggundu of the Electoral Commission and the deputy chief justice Stephen Kavuma had to ban the campaign of defiance, that was the Presidential Candidate Dr. Kizza Besigye who run hard against the ruling party and the ruling regime of President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni and his National Resistance Movement.

So with that in context, the months after has been smeared with irregularities and malfunctions as the NRM and their Police has targeted FDC with full force. This they did with detaining members and leaders without court order, house-arrests, blocking of the headquarters and all sorts of other injustices done with an ordinary fashion of contempt of the constitution and law. These have been done as the 10^th Parliament was sworn-in and the President was busy having dignitaries from Turkey and South Korea.

Now that 2017 has arrived and ever since December 2016 the Independent Magazine editor and founder Andrew Mwenda has gone all wild on social media. At the same time TVO has disgraced him and his magazine. The graceful attempts have not been there as the words have addressed each other in fashions that would be in bars and not all in public. So Mwenda are using all tricks with his connections as he even seemingly has traded his popularity and his work ethic for goods from the ruling regime. Because he has gone from being a fierce critic of the Movement and now he defends them.

With this in mind Mwenda has attracted and attacked with more and more staunch words, even as he becoming a laughing stock and a wild-card. Even if he would have pieces of truth, the spin and the propaganda fashion of it all is spoiling facts that might be there. Just like Uganda Media Centre and Hon. Ofwono Opondo spills the beans and defends the Movement with all means. Though his entitled way of sounding more like a NRM Spokesperson than a man who is government spokesperson is showing the transgression of the party itself; just like the NRM inner party election for the EALA done over two days there.

This is still not an issue in nation of Uganda and under the rule President Museveni, which want to be legitimate by every mean possible. Therefore he uses the media and false stories on NTV Uganda where the Party Constitution of FDC is in question. As NTV Uganda wrote yesterday:

“A plan to amend the constitution of Uganda’s main opposition party, the Forum for Democratic Change could cause a huge rift among its members if it goes through. The plan is to change clauses in the constitution to allow former FDC leaders another go at the helm of the party. According to the movers, many of FDC’s past leaders have been rendered useless to the party and yet they still have a lot to offer.” (NTV Uganda, 08.02.2017). However, as the story unfolded the FDC leadership debunked the story, Besigye said he would never run as a candidate under that or heard about it. TVO came out saying it was Mwenda who was the source and Hon. Francis Mwijukye wrote this about the farce:

“ Am told that there was a confusing story on NTV last evening about ammending the FDC constitution. Will be hosted on NTV Uganda 8.00 to 8.30am today morning. Let me go and make it clear. I think I was misquoted” (…) ”We were asked about the future of former FDC leaders and party founders. All I said was that I would support an inclusion in the party constitution of a party organ to deal with a council of Elders whose sole role would be to advise where necessary and for institutional memory. There was nothing like allowing former leaders to compete for top FDC positions in the party asked to me. Otherwise I can’t support that amendment” (Mwijukye, 08.02.2017).

When the higher echelons from the FDC are addressing the matter nearly simultaneously with the clip of the story aired, there are clear indications of malpractices in the standard. The NTV surely did this for political purposes. Just as there we’re reports that NTVs Sheila Nduhukire did directly celebrate with the NRM Party when they had done their EALA Primary Elections at the State House. Certainly the media and media houses are getting to close to the ruling regime.

We can just expect that government fuel illegitimate stories in their portrayal to demoralize and legitimize their own existence in power. Because they cannot do it by their own merit anymore, that gravy train left the station long time ago. They will use all means to establish and make the blatant ignorance of Mwenda and use their connections in NTV Uganda to portray the FDC as wolfs or even better wolf in sheep’s clothing.

The NRM and the Movement cannot sell the truth at this point, because that will undress their own existence and their own established fanfare of just cause. The probable cause that has left long time ago, the decades of bribes, thieving and misgivings has now caught up with them. The rigging and ill-forced ways are now what entitles people and therefore EALA elections are ugly instead of silent shows of democratic balloting. The NRM has to use the media and spin to make their biggest threat FDC into a shambolic affair of political charade. Since they have the ability themselves to make itself look unwise.

So the spins and the lies of deception will continue to fluster from the NRM and their media hawks, but still the truth will shine in the end. Peace.

UPC Statement: “Bring Down the Cost of Education” (08.02.2017)

Uganda: Fix the Disparities in Performance at PLE (18.01.2017)

Uganda: Hon. Julius Ochen “Re: Notice of Intention to Cause you to vacate Office as a Member of the Parliament of Uganda” (23.11.2016)