President Museveni with NRM legislators tour Rwamandi Abasonga Presidential farm in Ngoma Sub-county in Nakaseke District. PHOTO BY ppu.
At least 190 NRM legislators yesterday signed onto what President Museveni called “a very important motion” that observers say seeks to help him fix potential rivals within the party and secure the party flag ahead of the 2016 general elections.
The motion was signed by three quarters of the MPs attending the NRM retreat in Kyankwanzi. It was, yesterday afternoon, circulated to the media even as it emerged that debate and process of signature was still continuing to enable other party members to sign ahead of the party delegates’ conference.
Asked why the Prime Minister’s name was not on the attached list sent to media houses yet he was in Kyankwanzi at the time of signing the motion, Ms Evelyn Anite, the architect of the motion, said it was not deliberately withheld from Mr Amama Mbabazi and that by the time of presenting her motion yesterday, 190 MPs had appended their signatures.
“I was looking for seconders of my motion and when I realised that I had secured three quarters, I decided to move and ask others to sign later,” Ms Anite said. “In any case, by the time I was looking for members to sign, the Prime Minister was not in the room but I will look for him together with the Vice President to sign.”
Anite’s take
Asked why she leaked an incomplete document yet there was time to push the process to its logical conclusion, Ms Anite added: “There is nothing like leaking the motion to the media, this matter is in public interest and the journalists have been following this matter. I moved my motion in broad daylight and all members who signed were not forced.”
The Daily Monitor understands that the names of the 190 MPs whose signatures appeared on the list leaked to the media were read out by Peter Ogwang, the Youth MP for Eastern Uganda during yesterday’s session which was chaired by the President. Sources says Mr Museveni “smiling all the way through.” The MPs were singing, “Mzee Oyee, Mzee Abeewo” turning the retreat into a campaign platform.
By press time, the debate on the motion was still continuing.
The succession question remains a thorny issue within the ruling party with some members asking the President retire to allow a new person to lead the country. While Mr Mbabazi, former Vice President Gilbert Bukenya and Speaker Rebecca Kadaga have been in the news for reportedly harbouring presidential ambitions, the NRM parliamentary caucus resolved in s Anite’s motion to “discourage some senior leaders within the party with presidential ambitions from pursuing schemes that compromise party cohesion, unity, breed factionalism, and instead urge them to use established party procedures in an open manner.”
The caucus also resolved to strongly appeal to, and urge, Mr Museveni to offer himself as a presidential candidate and NRM flag-bearer in the 2016 general elections. According to the motion, the caucus also resolved that he continues leading and facilitating Uganda on its take-off journey to transformation.
When the suspicions about the Prime Minister’s ambitions came up over the weekend in Kyankwanzi, Mr Mbabazi dismissed the allegations against him as “rumours “and asked Mr Museveni not to listen to them.
“When the Ethiopian empire was falling, it listened to rumour. The Museveni that I know should have come to me if there was a problem,” Mr Mbabazi reportedly told the caucus.
Last month, the Mr Mbabazi told the new European Union Head of Delegation Kristian Schmidt that he would run for President if picked by the ruling party.
Post a Comment