Movement should first tackle internal intrigue

Feb 11, 2003

THE Movement vice-chairperson, Hajji Moses Kigongo, announced recently that he will be embarking on a countrywide mobilisation drive, to reunite the Movement supporters, and woo “those who broke away from it.”

By John Kakande

THE Movement vice-chairperson, Hajji Moses Kigongo, announced recently that he will be embarking on a countrywide mobilisation drive, to reunite the Movement supporters, and woo “those who broke away from it.”

“The many political processes in the recent past especially the elections, created divisions among the people. These divisions have affected the implementation of Movement programmes on the ground where personal loyalty is being used to determine beneficiaries of government development programmes,” Kigongo said.

It is important that Kigongo has recognised the fact that the Movement is currently divided.

The divisions cut across from the Movement’s top leadership to the lower levels. The divisions in the Movement have not just emerged. They have been growing, only that the leadership had hitherto not publicly acknowledged this reality.

The divisions climaxed during the last presidential elections with Col. Dr. Kizza Besigye taking on his erstwhile boss President Yoweri Museveni in the contest. Subsequently, a new group Reform Agenda came on the political scene.

Reform Agenda was a result of failure by the Movement leadership to promptly tackle internal contradictions.

Kigongo has a very difficult task on his hands. He will not achieve much unless the entire top Movement leadership goes back to the drawing board and deals with problems which have brought about the current state of affairs in the Movement.

Some factors causing friction and tension in the Movement are obvious.

One obvious problem is that some Movement top leaders have become intolerant to internal dissent and criticisms.

A system that does not accept multiparty politics, but at the same time cannot accommodate internal dissent is doomed.

Dissidents in the Movement are more or less regarded as ‘political enemies’. This is very evident in Parliament where Movement Members of Parliament like Maj. John Kazoora, Salaamu Musumba, Jack Sabiiti, Winnie Byanyima, Nathan Byanyima, Emmanuel Dombo, Bernadette Bigirwa, Nathan Nandala, et cetera are regarded as ‘enemies’ by some Movement leaders.

Last year, there was an incident in Parliament where a Movement secretariat official campaigned vigorously against the election of Dr. Elioda Tumwesigye as the chairperson of the parliamentary committee on HIV/Aids.

Members of the committee were intrigued by the action of the official. This intrigue among Movement leaders has also been very common in parliamentary and local government elections.

There has been talk that some ministers have sponsored candidates in constituencies of their colleagues who they consider to be political enemies.

In the recent by-election in Kassanda South, one faction of the Movement aggressively backed Nyombi Thembo and did everything to discredit his rival Deo Kayongo, the Jinja Resident District Commissioner, as if Kayongo was not a Movement cadre.

What happened during the Kassanda by-election was witnessed in many other constituencies during parliamentary elections. Unless this sort of intrigue is stopped, Kigongo’s mission will be futile!

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