Movt To Pick Leaders Today

PROMOTERS of the proposed new National Resistance Movement (NRM) organisation are to elect an interim executive for the new body today.

By Okello Jabweli
PROMOTERS of the proposed new National Resistance Movement (NRM) organisation are to elect an interim executive for the new body today.

The promoters, constituting former members of President Yoweri Museveni’s 2001 election national taskforce, historicals, directors of the Movement Secretariat and MPs who subscribe to the movement, yesterday met to consider a draft constitution for the new organisation.

Sources who attended the meeting chaired by the President said the group will re-convene at 2:00pm today to adopt the draft constitution clause by clause and elect an interim executive.

Museveni, the historical chairman of the Movement, is likely to stay as chairperson.
The current Movement leaders and the Movement Secretariat are not affected. The new structures and new office bearers are for the proposed Movement political organisation to compete for power under the multi party system.

The constitution, with a structure for the new organisation, was unveiled at a meeting at the International Conference Centre.

If the proposals are adopted today, the NRM organisation will have “Democracy, Peace, Unity and development” as its slogan.

It will either have a round sun with a torch or a round sun with a lamp as its emblem. The proposed flag will have light blue and light green against an oak yellow background.
A source said the flag, done by Lt.Gen. Elly Tumwine, was designed to swallow the colours of all existing political parties.

Movement leaders want to register the new organisation before the end of next month.
The developments follow the Movement NEC and National Conference resolutions in March, calling for the opening up of political space and turning the movement system into a political organisation.

In the proposed structure, the NRM organisation reintroduces the 10 cell (mayumba kumi) households as its lowest unit.

Other proposed structures are the NRM National Conference which shall be the highest organ, followed by the National Executive and the Central Executive Committee.
Committees wil be formed at district, sub-county, parish, village and cell levels.

Sources told the New Vision yesterday that during the elections, promoters of the new organisation intend to garner more than a thousand signatures from all the districts.

According to its draft constitution, the NRM organisation will strive to consolidate democracy and constitutional governance consolidate peace, and security and eliminate all forms of terrorism in Uganda. It will also strive to consolidate national unity, defend national sovereignty and build an integrated, self-sustaining national economy.

A team of lawyers and politicians led by defence minister Amama Mbabazi drafted the constitution. Others are MPs Oliver Wonekha (Mbale Woman), Adolf Mwesige (Bunyangabu), Sam Kutesa (Mawoggola), Agard Didi (Moyo West), Daudi Migereko (Butembe) and Zam Zam Nagujja, the deputy director of Legal Affairs at the Movement Secretariat. Mbabazi and Tumwine made presentations at yesterday’s meeting.

The interim executive will be responsible for going to districts to source signatures to support registration of the organisation.

The Political parties and Organisations Act 2000 requires individuals desirous of forming political organisations to accompany their applications with at least 50 signatures from two thirds of the districts. The 50 members per district will be officially referred to as founders.

First Deputy Premier Eriya Kategaya, local government minister Bidandi Ssali and MPs opposed to the proposed no-term limit for a president attended. Movement vice-chairman Moses Kigongo attended.

Sources said third term critics Maj. John Kazoora, Augustine Ruzindana, Jack Sabiti, Emmanuel Dombo, Bernaddete Bigirwa and Capt. Guma Gumisiriza allegedly signed documents accepting to be members of the Movement organisation. The group had a showdown with the President on Sunday on the third term issue.

Mbabazi and Movement information director Ofwono-Opondo said the meeting was cordial and “even movement members who have been having slight problems here and there signed to become members of the movement organisation.”
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