Ssekikubo blames woes on Kutesa

Lwemiyaga County MP Theodore Ssekikubo yesterday accused Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Kutesa of being behind his political troubles.

Mr Ssekikubo told a press conference at Parliament that members of the State security apparatus were trailing him. His pronouncement follows last Sunday’s gun shots that were fired at Lwenzo Trading, Ssembabule District, as police tried to arrest his body guard, Alex Mugabi. MP Ssekikubo was reportedly beaten up by the police in the process.

“Whatever they are doing now is a continuous project of harassment which is part of a well orchestrated scheme to have me killed. Even the alleged assault does not exist but it has been a build-up scheme to ensure that Ssekikubo must die,” he said. He claimed Mr Kutesa was behind the disruption of his rally. Citing the Sunday incident, Mr Ssekikubo said a hitman had been paid Shs200,000 to kill him.

The lawmaker said a police patrol pick-up truck registration number UP 0799 drove to his rally in Lwenzo to provoke him. “A whole southern regional police commander of Masaka District, Mr Charles Nuwagira, came out of the police patrol car and claimed we had issues to sort out. They began shooting in the air. They beat me up and caused commotion,” Mr Ssekikubo said.

The MP had in an August 17 letter to President Museveni claimed he was receiving death threats from Mr Kutesa. “Kutesa convinced 309 people to sign a petition to remove me from Parliament. In...his petition, he noted that ‘we hereby warn that in case no disciplinary action is taken against Ssekikubo from the top NRM leadership, we shall be forced to use undemocratic means to save ourselves from this hostility,’ which means he wanted to apply extrajudicial means to finish me,” he added.

The MP criticised President Museveni for allegedly failing to take action against the minister. Mr Kutesa could not be reached for a comment but Ssembabule Woman MP Hanifa Kawooya yesterday defended the minister and blamed Ssekikubo for the mess.

She also dismissed allegations that the minister wants Ssekikubo dead. “What I know is that honourable Kuteesa has not been in the country and in the constituency. Ssekikubo has been fighting from village to village with his own people,” Ms Kawooya said.