Sebaggala’s gamble is a very risky one
Oct 24, 2004
PRESIDENTIAL aspirant Nasser Sebaggala is an accomplished mobiliser.
PRESIDENTIAL aspirant Nasser Sebaggala is an accomplished mobiliser.
However, his move to try to bypass the DP president Paul Ssemogerere and chairperson Boniface Byanyima by ganging up with the Francis Bwengye faction to register the DP is a dangerous political gamble that could cost him dearly.
It is also likely to leave the party fatally wounded and unable to be a major player in the forthcoming national elections. According to latest reports, the Registrar General has refused to avail party registration forms to Sebaggala and his associates Mariano Drametu, Zachary Olum, Robert Kitariko and Bwengye.
It was clear from the beginning that it would not be easy for Sebaggala to process the registration of DP against the wishes of Ssemogerere and Byanyima. Even if he had succeeded in getting the registration forms, still he would have faced serious legal obstacles along the way. As a matter of fact, this isn’t the first time a faction of DP has attempted to register it.
The Bwengye faction over a year ago submitted an application for the party’s registration but the registrar rejected the application on two grounds. First, he argued that there was a DP leadership dispute suit No. 1634/2000 pending in the High Court. He also contended that the application contravened the Political Parties and Organisations Act 2000.
Under section 7(12) of the Parties Act, the Bwengye faction could have appealed against the registrar’s decision in the High Court. Bwengye instead shelved the DP registration until it was revived by Sebaggala.
The case which was filed by Ssebaana Kizito and other party members in 2000 after Bwengye staged a coup to oust Ssemogerere, has dragged on because the judge wanted the two warring parties to reach an out-of-court settlement. Indeed there were protracted negotiations brokered by the DP parliamentary caucus. On May 8 Ssemogerere and Bwengye announced that they had reconciled and shook hands.
As part of the agreement, a Process Management Committee (PMC) was set up with Boniface Byanyima as its overall chairperson with a mandate “to manage the agreed roadmap that will result in full rejuvenation of all the Party structure countrywide, full reorganisation ending in Delegates Conference at which comprehensive leadership renewal would be undertaken.â€
The membership of the PMC was drawn from the two rival DP factions with Ali Sserunjogi and John Baptist Kakooza as co-chairpersons. The others on the committee include Zachary Olum, Mariano Drametu, Joseph Balikuddembe, Patrick Musisi, Kassiano Wadri, Rainer Kafire, Eriasi Lukwago and Hellen Acam. It is now obvious the PMC has collapsed.
The irony is that the DP caucus members who initially brokered the Ssemogerere-Bwengye May 8 reconciliation have joined the Bwengye-Sebaggala faction. This means there is no longer any neutral group to bring the warring factions to a negotiation table. But the person who has benefited most from Sebaggala’s manoeuvers is Bwengye who had politically fizzled out after his dismal performance in the 2001 presidential elections.
Bwengye’s decision to swear an affidavit affirming that the 2001 presidential elections were free and fair and were devoid of rigging had made him a political ‘outcast’ as far as the mainstream opposition is concerned. This is why Bwengye was the only former presidential candidate excluded from attending meetings organised by the Group of Seven (G7) mainstream parties.
Nevertheless, he still faces an uphill task to convince other mainstream opposition forces that he isn’t a surrogate for the Movement. By ganging up with the Bwengye faction, Sebaggala has also taken a great political risk.
Ends
However, his move to try to bypass the DP president Paul Ssemogerere and chairperson Boniface Byanyima by ganging up with the Francis Bwengye faction to register the DP is a dangerous political gamble that could cost him dearly.
It is also likely to leave the party fatally wounded and unable to be a major player in the forthcoming national elections. According to latest reports, the Registrar General has refused to avail party registration forms to Sebaggala and his associates Mariano Drametu, Zachary Olum, Robert Kitariko and Bwengye.
It was clear from the beginning that it would not be easy for Sebaggala to process the registration of DP against the wishes of Ssemogerere and Byanyima. Even if he had succeeded in getting the registration forms, still he would have faced serious legal obstacles along the way. As a matter of fact, this isn’t the first time a faction of DP has attempted to register it.
The Bwengye faction over a year ago submitted an application for the party’s registration but the registrar rejected the application on two grounds. First, he argued that there was a DP leadership dispute suit No. 1634/2000 pending in the High Court. He also contended that the application contravened the Political Parties and Organisations Act 2000.
Under section 7(12) of the Parties Act, the Bwengye faction could have appealed against the registrar’s decision in the High Court. Bwengye instead shelved the DP registration until it was revived by Sebaggala.
The case which was filed by Ssebaana Kizito and other party members in 2000 after Bwengye staged a coup to oust Ssemogerere, has dragged on because the judge wanted the two warring parties to reach an out-of-court settlement. Indeed there were protracted negotiations brokered by the DP parliamentary caucus. On May 8 Ssemogerere and Bwengye announced that they had reconciled and shook hands.
As part of the agreement, a Process Management Committee (PMC) was set up with Boniface Byanyima as its overall chairperson with a mandate “to manage the agreed roadmap that will result in full rejuvenation of all the Party structure countrywide, full reorganisation ending in Delegates Conference at which comprehensive leadership renewal would be undertaken.â€
The membership of the PMC was drawn from the two rival DP factions with Ali Sserunjogi and John Baptist Kakooza as co-chairpersons. The others on the committee include Zachary Olum, Mariano Drametu, Joseph Balikuddembe, Patrick Musisi, Kassiano Wadri, Rainer Kafire, Eriasi Lukwago and Hellen Acam. It is now obvious the PMC has collapsed.
The irony is that the DP caucus members who initially brokered the Ssemogerere-Bwengye May 8 reconciliation have joined the Bwengye-Sebaggala faction. This means there is no longer any neutral group to bring the warring factions to a negotiation table. But the person who has benefited most from Sebaggala’s manoeuvers is Bwengye who had politically fizzled out after his dismal performance in the 2001 presidential elections.
Bwengye’s decision to swear an affidavit affirming that the 2001 presidential elections were free and fair and were devoid of rigging had made him a political ‘outcast’ as far as the mainstream opposition is concerned. This is why Bwengye was the only former presidential candidate excluded from attending meetings organised by the Group of Seven (G7) mainstream parties.
Nevertheless, he still faces an uphill task to convince other mainstream opposition forces that he isn’t a surrogate for the Movement. By ganging up with the Bwengye faction, Sebaggala has also taken a great political risk.
Ends