Dr. Kizza Besigye can’t always eat his cake and have it at the same time.
While he rightly believes that the what and how of the way forward for the opposition requires a conversation to achieve convergence, he should not ignore the fact that there are many reasons he needs to rebuild his own trust among the forces of change.
1. While he quit the FDC leadership as the president general, he never supported the official structures or elected President of FDC but instead created parallel structures and offices such SUUBI, A4C, 4GC and the so called People’s Government always with an eye on the presidential flag bearer slot of the party.
2. Talking about the constitution, the Uganda Forum for Democratic Change constitution too was tampered with or a new interpretation to separate the role of party president from party presidential flag bearer was created only when he ceased to be party president. Is it always about him?
3. While his winning message in 2015 Forum for Democratic Change party primaries, beating Gen. Mugisha Muntu being that Mugisha Muntu was preparing to stand in an illegitimate electoral process, and he was focusing on electoral reforms with a no reforms no elections agenda, he did not live up to his promise. It turned out it was only but intended to outwit Mugisha Muntu. Was it all about him?
4.While he had promised to respect the public process to choose a joint TDA candidate, he pulled out of it on realising that consensus was not in his favour, only to pick nomination forms and stand in an election with no prior electoral reforms against his earlier promise! Again all about him?
5. While during the campaigns he openly promised never to go back to Yoweri Museveni’s courts to challenge election results, he now claims he wanted to challenge the results save for him being incarcerated after the declaration of results. Did he intend to challenge the results or not? Did it have to be him in person or FDC as a party?
6. While he rejected the results of the 2016 elections and castigated Gen. Mugisha Muntu for appointing a leader of opposition yet Forum for Democratic Change wasn’t the opposition party, his preferred candidate for party President who eventually won too appointed a leader of opposition and other opposition officials in parliament serving the illegitimate government.
7. Examining the claim that he’s focused on removing Yoweri Museveni from power before 2021, the how to remove him is not clear to those he claims to rally behind this cause. One of the constitutional means of removing Yoweri Museveni before 2021 should be through parliament. But How many members of parliament does FDC have? Even if as a miracle power was handed over to him, how would he govern under an over 80% hostile parliament with impeachment powers?
It seems as though he aims at undermining anyone with intention that seeks to show interest in the top office until he gets “his” “victory” handed over to him. How and by whom, no body knows. Not withstanding the fact that he has never declared the results of his own tally process at least to the public court.
In fact, emerging evidence from his own party demanding for presidential elections tally sheets from a certain non Forum for Democratic Change member of Parliament as recently as this year leaves one wondering the basis on which he claims he won the elections without the party’s copy of the tally sheets.
We all recall, Hon. Mathias Mpuuga’s report that Forum for Democratic Change and indeed Dr. Besigye had no polling agents as near as Masaka Municipality to pick their presidential candidate’s tally sheets later alone protect his votes. This was the case in large parts of the Country, the reason he was emphasising a need for opposition forces’ unity.
7. While Dr. Besigye seeks to turn the focus of the electorate from preparing for the next elections, we all know that his Country wide movement and campaign is two fold,
a) To keep himself relevant as the only viable alternative to Yoweri Museveni hoping that a natural calamity strikes and Yoweri Museveni gets incapacitated to continue serving as president.
b) To remain the one and only viable option to stand against Yoweri Museveni in 2021. In other words playing his usual trick of discouraging others from preparing to participate in the forthcoming elections while he does exactly the opposite.
Why would anyone take his calls for a joint and open discussion serious and genuine this time round? Why should he always portray the impression that he alone can shape an agreeable agenda for the forces of change in Uganda?
By Moses Bukenya
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