FDC chairman forced out of office

By Darious Magara

Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) youth on Monday threw their Kampala Metropolitan chairman Livingstone Kizito out of office for double standards.

They accused Kizito of being a National Resistance Movement (NRM) party mole.

Kizito was first attacked from his car, which was parked on the compound of the party headquarters in Najjanankumbi, a city suburb, Monday morning.  

Hassan Kirunda and Faridah Nakabugo stormed the party headquarters and started hulling insults at Kizito, who was almost forced out of his car to fight back.

Kirunda and a group of youth alleged that Kizito had been meeting President Yoweri Museveni regularly at State house and had been leaking FDC secrets to the government.

The duo said he [Kizito] had been sacked and should vacate office instead of wasting the party’s time and resources.

The youth also accused Kizito of causing unrest among party members in the city.

“Ggwe mbizi ggwe. Va wanno obeera ng’otuteeka mu mawulire,” Nakabugo shouted in the local dialect Luganda, meaning, ‘You pig get out of our sight. You have been tarnishing our image in the press.’ Kirunda also piled more words on Kizito: ”You have always despised me but today I am going to rough you up.  

The attack coincided with the presence of the journalists who were covering the party’s weekly briefing. 

As the youth attacked Kizito, the journalists at the party head offices quickly seized the chance to catch the drama on camera and paper.

Kizito’s sympathizers did not take the scathing remarks lightly, causing a fight to break out from the party’s secretary general’s office.  

FDC party members James Ssekirima and Kakande Twalib said their chairman would not be tarnished for nothing by nonentities in the party. Kizito’s efforts to get help from security operatives failed. 

He told journalists that the youth who attacked him had been hired by the NRM party to disorganize FDC. 

Kizito was later asked by the party officials to leave the headquarters so as to calm down the situation. 

A top party official, Bwanika Bbaale struggled to restore order at the headquarters that did not have police operatives or private guards.  

The deputy party spokesperson, Toterebuka Tibamwenda, who witnessed the fight, said the youth were free to flex their muscles while settling grievances.

However, FDC spokesperson Wafula Ogutt said the party would meet and resolve the matter. 

Sources at the offices said Kizito had been summoned by the party disciplinary committee over loyalty issues. 

“We have heard for long that Kizito is an NRM spy and we want to ascertain that,” the source added.