The fight has escalated between National Resistance Movement (NRM) bigwigs who are fighting for support to seat on Central Executive Committee (CEC) leadership come 2021-2026.
After a fight between Captain Babu and Moses Kigongo for NRM Vice Chairperson, another fight is now between the Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga and Government Chief Whip Ruth Nankabirwa who is campaigning for Kadaga’s opponent Princess Namuganza for the second national vice chairperson ahead of Central Executive Committee (CEC) elections.
While Nankabirwa has all along denied having any disagreements with Kadaga, she went bare knuckles on Sunday, circulating messages through the social messaging application, WhatsApp, accusing Kadaga that she is a hypocrisy who is working for opposition and so does not fit to seat on the CEC since that is the heart of NRM.
“We want people who will sacrifice for the party, not those who betray us by working with the opposiition. We have seen what Kadaga has been doing on TV and radio. We should let in Namuganza to help Museveni. We will not support anyone who does not respect CEC ,” said Nankabirwa.
Namuganza is challenging Kadaga for the second National vice-chairpersons slot, in the Central Executive Committee.
Nankabirwa, whose role in Parliament is to ensure that all government activities are coordinated, used a social media message forwarded to several NRM groups to plead with the voters, to elect people who sacrifice for the party.
Nankabirwa says that she alone knows what she has gone through with Kadaga as the Speaker adding that as many have observed, Kadaga is not promoting NRM ideologies, yet the position she is vying for requires someone who can ably work with the president, as the chairman of the ruling party.
Nankabirwa says they should never elect people who use the party for personal gain, and those who do not respect its organs. CEC is the second topmost organ of the NRM party.
Kadaga has oftentimes taken a strong stand pushing the government to either account, make statements and sometimes challenged the government ministers on their decisions. This on several occasions has depicted her as a force against the sitting government.
In another message, posted by the Chief Whip on the Mubende Political forum, Nankabirwa emphasises the need to write a statement in black and white by voting for Namuganza. “They will be judged by their deeds,” Nankabirwa says.
The race between Kadaga and Namuganza as well as the other between Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulannyah and Sam Engola have proved to be the toughest in the CEC elections. Although President Yoweri Museveni has asked some contenders to drop out of other races, he reportedly said, voters, should be allowed to decide on these two.
On Friday, the President convinced Captain Francis Babu to step down for Alhaji Moses Kigongo, for the position of National Vice-chairperson.
Sam Obbo, the Principle Press Secretary to Kadaga says that it is grossly unfair to judge the Speaker on what she does in the August house objectively.
“While in the August House, the Speaker has to take an objective rather than a subjective stance. Therefore, what’s perceived as betrayal or hobnobbing with the Opposition is way off the mark. What kind of Legislature would Uganda have if the Speaker were to be partisan on every motion, debate or submission on the floor?” Obbo questions
He adds that the Speaker commands a lot of respect across the political divide and beyond Uganda’s borders because of the objective manner in which she runs the house. “In the spirit of Fairplay, she isn’t obliged to wear subjective lenses. The electorate, for the CEC post, across the country, will certainly weigh her strength and do the needful,” Obbo says.
