Resign, Mukula tells Mbabazi

L-R: NRM eastern region vice chairperson Mike Mukula, secretary general Amama Mbabazi and chairman Yoweri Museveni. Capt Mukula says Mr Mbabazi should resign from the party’s decision-making organ because he can no longer work smoothly with Mr Museveni.

What you need to know:

* Capt Mukula, a senior member of NRM, says Mbabazi should resign from the party’s Central Executive Committee.
* Kanungu District leaders resolve to petition President Museveni over what they term as humiliation of their elder.

Kampala

A senior member of the NRM has asked recently sacked prime minister Amama Mbabazi to resign from the ruling party’s highest decision-making organ.

Capt Mike Mukula, the NRM national vice chairperson for eastern, told this newspaper yesterday Mr Mbabazi should leave the NRM Central Executive Committee (CEC), or risk “further embarrassment.”

President Museveni sacked Mr Mbabazi in a lone reshuffle recently but the former premier is still NRM’s secretary general. Mr Mbabazi also sits on all the party’s key decision-making organs, including CEC, which comprises of the party’s chairman, four vice chairpersons, treasurer, representatives of historical, women and workers’ leagues. The organ sets the party’s agenda.

However, according to Capt Mukula, who once held presidential ambitions before dropping them, Mr Mbabazi has lost the moral ground to sit on the CEC. “Mr Mbabazi has lost the moral ground. If he does not have a foundation to sit on the high command of the executive, where does he get the moral authority and confidence to sit on the highest organ of the ruling party?” Capt Mukula, who is also the Soroti Municipality MP, said. “The moment you’re fired from the executive of the ruling party, it means the President can no longer work with you. The political marriage is over and the divorce papers have been signed.”

However, NRM deputy spokesperson Ofwono Opondo, said Capt Mukula’s opinion is not backed by any regulation of NRM. “We believe Mr Mbabazi will now concentrate on the secretary general job as he has promised. Capt Mukula is nonetheless free to demand for his resignation,” Mr Opondo said.

Capt Mukula’s view is shared by some other members in CEC, who on the request to stay anonymous, told Daily Monitor there could be tension during party meetings if Mr Mbabazi stays as secretary general.

“We are going to have a divided committee because the President and some members don’t trust Mr Mbabazi yet he is supposed to be the secretary general and custodian of our records,” Mr Mukula said. He said CEC members would not speak openly and the President, who is also the party chairman, would be put in an awkward position.

“Mr Mbabazi has lost many friends and senior members have left the party because of him. But nobody is indispensable, the party is bigger than Mr Mbabazi,” Capt Mukula said adding: “Mbabazi remains a friend to many and an enemy to many”.

While Mr Mbabazi did not answer our calls, in March this year, his wife, Ms Jacqueline Mbabazi, a member of CEC, fired back at the NRM for plotting against her husband, saying the conduct of the party caucus towards her and her husband reflected repression within the ruling party. She talked of fascist tendencies within NRM, concluding Mr Mbabazi was “a target of orchestrated cliques and groups”.

Is proposal feasible?

Capt Mukula’s proposal, however, will be a tall order seeing the NRM constitution mandates the delegates conference, an assembly of more than 10,000 party faithful, to choose the secretary general, let alone replace any senior member of the party.
Mr Mbabazi’s (pictured) sacking is seen as punishment for his refusal to denounce reports that he is working covertly to challenge President Museveni for the country’s top job in 2016.

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