UPC angered by Museveni's remarks on ICC

Apr 10, 2013

The UPC party has expressed disappointment over President Yoweri Museveni''s denouncement of the ICC on Tuesday in Kenya.

By Moses Mulondo & Olive Namukwaya

The Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) has expressed disappointment over President Yoweri Museveni's denouncement of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday in Kenya.

“President Museveni has put our nation to shame by opposing ICC’s efforts to bring to book the perpetrators of the 2007 Kenya violence. President Museveni wants to eat his cake and then have it at the same time .He misrepresented Uganda. It shows he is not committed to the struggle against violation of human rights,” the UPC spokesperson Okello Lucima said on Wednesday.

The UPC leaders explained that there is no way Africans can trust internal undertakings to fight violations of human rights when most of the African governments are autocratic.

“Whether you are talking about the East African Community or the African Union, they are simply organizations serving the interests of African presidents not the interests of the African people. That is why international interventions like ICC are necessary,” he elaborated.

Referring to the 2009 Kayunga riots during which many were shot dead, the Luwero war, killings in Northern Uganda, Rwanda  genocide, Uganda’s military activities in DR Congo, Okello appealed to ICC to investigate the crimes and violations of human rights.

On why UPC top leaders were absent at the wedding of Lira Municipality MP Jimmy Akena, Okello said, “UPC is not just the party president, his vice, the party chairman and party spokesperson. There are so many UPC members who attended his wedding.”

In the recent past, there have been wrangles in UPC ignited by a group led by Akena who wanted to overthrow the party President Olara Otunnu.

Asked whether Olara had been invited to attend the wedding, Okello said, “Yes, the party president was invited but he had prior plans which made him travel abroad before the wedding.”

The UPC leaders also expressed shock that of all the role model leaders on the African continent, the Kenyan government chose President Museveni to be the chief guest on the swearing in ceremony for the newly elected Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta.

“There is nothing fresh and inspiring that Museveni can give the Kenyans. His democratic credentials are so wanting. They should have given that honour to the South African President Jacob Zuma or the Tanzanian president Jakaya Kikwete,” he said.

About government’s decision to withdrawal the controversial marriage and divorce Bill which UPC has been supporting, the UPC leaders said it was a clear indication that the NRM government is not committed to the struggle for women emancipation and protecting women from injustices committed against them in marriage.

The party also repeated its call for a truth and reconciliation commission for truth telling about all the political evils committed in the past.

Okello sounded a wake-up call to the nation to rise up and stop the passing of the Public Order Management Bill which is currently being debated in parliament arguing it would stifle democracy in the country.
 

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