Museveni aide joins age limit campaign

KAMPALA. President Museveni’s private secretary for political affairs David Mafabi yesterday joined a group that describes itself as “Diverse members of the National Resistance Movement” to voice support for the removal of the age limit for the President from the Constitution.

During a meeting in Kampala, Mr Mafabi criticised members of the ruling NRM party for what he said was their silence on amendment of the Constitution to remove the age limit for President as the opposition is “threatening leaders, especially MPs with physical violence.”
“There are matters in my view that Yoweri Museveni will be shy, as a revolutionary to talk about. Our leader cannot be the one to say now let us deal with this [age limit removal], but you the cadreship, what are you doing?” Mr Mafabi charged.

Senior NRM leaders such as the party’s deputy treasurer Kenneth Omona, who said he was attending the meeting in his private capacity, asked the youth meeting to challenge the party’s mainstream leadership to join the debate.
“Put it on them, what is the top organ of your party doing about it? We don’t have a position of CEC on this matter but we must debate it,” he said, adding amendment of the Constitution “is constitutional.”
In a resolution read by Ms Phoebe Namulindwa, the NRM youth leader, the meeting urged the NRM Central Executive Committee (CEC) and other formal organs of the party to begin nationwide consultations to remove the age limit for President.

Article 102 of the Constitution bars a person aged above 75 to stand for President. President Museveni, now aged 73, will be ineligible to stand for another term in 2021 unless this provision is amended.
In a telephone conversation with Daily Monitor, NRM party spokesperson Mary Karooro Okurut, said CEC would consider the matter when it comes up before it.

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