Museveni meets opposition

May 27, 2010

POLITICAL parties in Africa should focus on national issues, promote democratic dialogue and the common good, President Yoweri Museveni has said.<br>

By Jude Kafuuma

POLITICAL parties in Africa should focus on national issues, promote democratic dialogue and the common good, President Yoweri Museveni has said.

In addition, Museveni said, the parties ought to promote national defence and security, justice, basic freedoms, human rights and the economy irrespective of their political differences.

“The role of the opposition, which is working for the common good, is to propose policy alternatives to those of the sitting government,” the President explained.

“The provision of alternative policy is what is needed to make the opposition an indispensable component of democratic governance.”

Museveni made the remarks while addressing a conference on inter-party dialogue at the Speke Commonwealth Resort Munyonyo in Kampala yesterday.
He warned against the tendency to base political competition on personal ambitions and on individual actors.

“Competitive programmes are what we should be dealing with,” he said.
Museveni said parties should base political opposition on policies that ensure development and the survival of Africans from poverty.

“Political dialogue should not be restricted to issues of elections only, but also on the common good of all Africans and their future survival,” he said.

Over 80 leaders of the ruling and opposition political parties from nine African countries are attending the three-day conference. It was organised by The Netherlands Institute of Multiparty Democracy under the
Inter-Party Organisation Dialogue.

Ugandan parties, which are represented on the dialogue are the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC), the Democratic Party (DP), the Justice Forum (JEEMA)and the Conservative Party (CP).

Museveni hailed the dialogue, saying it reaffirms the NRM’s commitment to principled dialogue at all levels of leadership.

“It is the ultimate responsibility of all Africans to promote dialogue and fight dictatorship. This was the main objective of the NRA when it took arms to fight bad leadership,” Museveni said.

He urged development partners not only to focus on funding democracy and good governance, but also on other bottlenecks that stifle economic growth. He cited electricity, roads and corruption. If these are also addressed, he said, democracy will flourish better.

He urged the meeting not to confine the discussions to democracy, but also address how Africa can defend herself against future colonisation by the developed world.

The chairman of the dialogue, John Kawanga of the DP, commended the fact that political parties were debating national issues.

The head of the Institute of Multi-Party Democracy of The Netherlands, Roel von Meijenfeldt, said political and economic reforms are only possible through the inter-party dialogue.

“Democracy can be achieved by the people who support it and this can promote economic and political reforms through such a dialogue.”

Meijenfeldt noted that only 17 African countries have democratic governance and sound economic policies.

NRM secretary general Amama Mbabazi described the meeting as a “good start” and an “expression of solidarity in building trust”.

However, he added that the the challenge was how the parties would adopt the decisions reached.

JEEMA secretary general Hussein Kyanjo decried the high level of corruption and rising taxes, which he said have failed the economy.

In a reaction, Government Chief Whip Daudi Migereko said the economy was doing well, but the cost of doing business was high.

“The fight against corruption is continuous. We are putting in place institutions that can detect and deal with it,” he said.

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