DP rolls out 2016 action plan

By Moses Mulondo

The Democratic Party (DP) leaders have rolled out their action plan for 2016 which contains strategies and activities that will boost their chances of winning the next general elections.

Speaking  in the company of over 10 Buganda DP parliamentary candidates for 2016, the DP Vice President Ssebuliba Mutumba, Bukoto East MP Florence Namayanja and Buikwe South MP Dr. Michael Lulume Bayiga assured DP supporters that the party would field candidates at all levels.

Some of the action points the party leaders mentioned include conducting stakeholders’ meetings, organizing awareness and training workshops, persuading and selecting 2016 star candidates, composing DP songs, fundraising drive, establish an elders’ council, organize an annual DP heroes’ day, and an events management team to organize strikes, demonstrations, and political rallies.  

In what they call DP Revival Campaign for restoring the glory of DP as the strongest party in the country, the party leaders said they have started the drive of recapturing DP’s strongholds in the Buganda regions.

“As the DP leaders from Buganda, we want to win at least 80 of the 90 parliamentary seats in Buganda and if we don’t emerge the overall winner of the 2016 general elections, at least we shall emerge as the leader of opposition.

With 35 MPs against DP’s 15 MPs, and UPC’s 11 MPs, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) became the leader of the opposition in parliament with its attendant privileges.

Ssebuliba said one of their missions is to reconcile unite the various factions within DP. All the 15 MPs DP has come from the Buganda region.

These factions which he mentioned include DP mainstream, UYD Johnson Street, Sam Lugega’s faction, DP Ssuubi group, DP elders group, and the Baganda young elite in Mengo.

“There is no way we can enter the 2016 race when we are not united and convince the nation to entrust us with leadership. We have talked to all the members of these factions and they are positive about the initiative for reconciliation,” Ssebuliba explained.

In an exclusive interview with The New Vision, Ssebuliba revealed that as part of the move to galvanize and revive DP’s strength, the party executive will meet tomorrow (Thursday) to further discuss initiatives which will enable Uganda’s oldest party to compete effectively.

“We shall discuss issues to do with electoral reforms, campaign strategies and set a roadmap for DP internal elections for establishing grassroots party structures and party primaries,” Ssebuliba said.

Dr. Michael Lulume Bayiga said the initiatives they have come up with to widen DP’s network in Buganda would be replicated in the other regions.