DP dismisses Museveni's corruption fight arrangement

Dec 12, 2018

While officiating at the Anti-Corruption week at Kololo Independence Grounds, on Monday, Museveni earmarked latest arrangements to deal with corruption among others a plan to confiscate property of public servants who steal public money.

Democratic Party president Norbert Mao addressing journalists during a press conference at the party offices on City House in Kampala on November 13, 2018. Photo by Nancy Nanyonga

LEADERSHIP

KAMPALA - The Democratic Party has retorted to President Yoweri Museveni's latest promise to fight corruption with pessimism.

Addressing journalists during the weekly party press conference at City House based party headquarters in Kampala on Tuesday, the party president general, Norbert Mao, stated; "Museveni's so called corruption fight programme is a mock fight."

While officiating at the Anti-Corruption week at Kololo Independence Grounds, on Monday, Museveni earmarked latest arrangements to deal with corruption among others a plan to confiscate property of public servants who steal public money.

"Our proposal infighting corruption is only one, personal example, nobody who can even listen to president's explanation on corruption because they are looking at his conduct, we need the President to show by personal example, it is simple as that" Mao said.

The NRM government according to Mao is sustained through corruption as a methodology of power retention which complicates the fight against corruption

"Programmes such as the Standard Gauge Railway and construction of dams are failing because of corruption," he said.

Meanwhile DP announced it was in for the Inter- party Organisation for Dialogue (IPOD) summit set today at Speak Resort Munyonyo in Kampala.

 Mao explained: "We are going into the summit with lots of reservations, but we are going that is the important thing."

The party Last week indicated that it would not attend the summit. 

Their opposition counterpart, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), has insisted on their position rejecting that they will not attend IPOD presided over by President Museveni, who is the NRM party boss.

Justifying their decision to participate in IPOD, DP stressed: "Uganda is at very delicate state whether you believe it or not, this country can actually fall apart in case you people you are joking."

In one of the IPOD meetings last year, FDC threatened to pull out after raising complaints that the ruling party does not implement a number of issues agreed upon.

 Founded in 2010, IPOD is a consortium of political parties represented in Parliament which includes the NRM, FDC, DP, UPC and JEEMA

It was initiated by development partners to bring those parties to a round table to generate consensus on various issues of national importance.

 "We are committed to the spirit of IPOD but you may ask me what we are going to achieve, I do not know but conflict resolution is not for the faint hearted, you must sit and discuss with the person you do not want at all," Mao maintained.

He added: "The question is that do we have something to tell the President, obviously we have. My expectation is that IPOD is meeting after eight years, but if you do not want to make tough decisions do not become a leader."

Mao expressed disappointment by FDC's decision not to attend, noting that it was time to unite as opposition in order to cause change.

We have nothing to lose by going to tell each other, not just with NRM but all of us, I'm sure that even President has a lot to tell us. 

IPOD is also an incentive for people to learn to organise and from now onwards, I will defend IPOD and I will not accept DP being attacked especially from within," DP president noted.

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});