I was not in the least surprised by the rigging of the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) elections for the representatives to the forthcoming party delegates conference.
I was not in the least surprised by the rigging of the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) elections for the representatives to the forthcoming party delegates conference. The problem, however, is that such clearly undemocratic and disgraceful actions do not only further discredit UPC, but also damage the image of the entire opposition at a critical time. What should be realised is that the rigging of the UPC polls in Lango is part of a broader scheme mooted way back in April this year shortly after UPC received its registration certificate. The scheme started with the reshuffle of the party leadership that saw Dr James Rwanyarare relegated to a mere so-called advisor on NRM affairs and relations with the coalition of the six main political parties — the G6. I stated in this column at the time that the reason Obote made the reshuffle was to sideline the party members who are popular and independent-minded with the potential or have expressed ambition to lead the party. Notably, during the reshuffle, the prominent politicians with a significant following such as MPs Ogwal, Ben Wacha, Dr Okullo Epak and Omara Atubo were either excluded entirely from leadership of the party or appointed to peripheral positions. Ogwal was relegated to a mere member of the so-called ‘manifesto and constitutional’ review sub-committee. People like Ogwal and Rwanyarare were removed from key posts to ensure they do not have influential roles in the party delegates conference, which will elect the new leader to replace Obote. Furthermore, since Ogwal has been locked out of leadership in her constituency, she is very unlikely to be the party’s parliamentary candidate for Lira Municipality. This has reinforced the view that Obote is scheming to get his son Jimmy Akena into UPC leadership. Akena was in Lira Municipality for the party elections and was reportedly elected unopposed — in typical UPC style. Akena now has a seat in the delegates conference. He is also likely to be the party’s parliamentary candidate for the municipality. Claims by the UPC Constitutional Steering Committee chairman Haji Badru Wegulo, that Ogwal and Atubo didn’t turn up in time for the elections are not believable. Livingstone Okello Okello’s argument that non-members should leave the UPC apply its own regulations to manage its processes is unfortunate. I don’t need to remind Okello Okello of the provisions of Section 71(c) that states that, “the internal organisation of a political party shall conform to the democratic principles enshrined in (this) Constitution.†Parties have a constitutional obligation to exercise internal democracy. A party that cannot guarantee internal democracy can also not guarantee free and fair national elections if elected to power. However, it isn’t only UPC that is lacking in internal democracy. All political parties have not demonstrated that they are internally democratic. The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) top leaders have adopted a resolution appointing themselves as automatic members of the party’s delegates conference. They won’t be elected to the delegates conference as the rest of delegates. The NRM, the first political party to be duly registered two years ago, has not conducted any proper internal elections. NRM MPs are pressurising to be the automatic party parliamentary candidates. It appears the reason NRM has failed to organise branch elections is because of fears that these elections could be stormy and chaotic. There are signs that the NRM branch elections could cause major internal split. I won’t be surprised if the NRM executive subsequently shelves the branch elections and opts to handpick its candidates. The circus in the Democratic Party is public knowledge. This circus is largely orchestrated by a discredited faction that has since 2000 been scheming to seize control of the party. In a nutshell, all political parties have skeletons in their cupboards. Ends