Kiyonga Implicates Mps In Kasese Raid

By John Kakande and Richard Mutumba HEALTH minister Dr Crispus Kiyonga has promised to present to Parliament radio and video cassette recordings to prove that MPs Christopher Kibanzanga and Kayeboga Kithende made 'inflammatory statements' before the March 12 presidential election. Kiyonga said the statements, made during the presidential election campaigns, appeared "to suggest that some people knew" there would be an attack in Kasese if President Yoweri Museveni won the elections. Kiyonga, who is also MP for Bukonzo West, said some people fear more attacks could take place to punish them for having voted for Museveni. He said out of desperation, "some wananchi were considering requesting for the application of the Article of the Constitution which relates to take over of the district administration by the President so that Kasese could for some time be directly administered by the central government." In a statement to the House yesterday, Kiyonga said he would not apologise or withdraw his statement as demanded by Kibanzanga on Tuesday. He did not mention Kithende by name but he made reference to Kibanzanga "and his colleague." "I stand by what I said. I have no apologies to make and therefore no statement to withdraw. The struggle continues," he said. Kibanzanga, the Busongora South MP, on Tuesday made a statement to the House in which he attacked Kiyonga for connecting him and his colleague Kithende (Bukonzo East) to the March 17 attack on Kasese that left 10 people dead and 54 vehicles burnt. "I have firm evidence to back the statement I made," Kiyonga said and reaffirmed what he had earlier stated that the Kasese attack "was generated and executed by a group of disgruntled politicians who want to use ADF as a cover-up." He said the recorded tapes prove that Kibanzanga during the campaign stated that "no one has a monopoly of violence. We shall struggle to the end." Kiyonga said Kithende, who he did not name, went to a radio station, days before the presidential election and stated that "Museveni did not consider the Bakonzo people as equal to rest of Ugandans because he had refused to grant them a kingdom." "He added that the Bakonzo people were 4 million and should continue to wage their struggle," Kiyonga said. He said the MP alleged that UPDF soldiers were suppressing the Bakonzo in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Kiyonga said there was anger in Kasese over the attack and that "people think the perpetrators of this crime are obvious to identify." He said it was only that they had restrained the people from taking the law into their hands. Ends