NRM leaders collect signatures to kick Tanga Odoi out of office

National Resistance Movement (NRM) district leaders have started collecting signatures to write a petition to the national party chairman to kick the party’s electoral commission boss, Mr Tanga Odoi out of office over what they call “indiscipline and bad conduct.”

Addressing journalists in Kampala on Tuesday, Mr Joseph Sewava Mukasa, the national youth coordinator said the district leaders need to raise at least 250 signatures to be able to petition President Museveni about Mr Odoi’s conduct. He however, said the party’s constitution is silent on the number of signatures needed to accompany such a petition.
“The process is on to take a petition to the National Party Chairman and President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni to act against Tanga Odoi because as leaders, we shall not tolerate acts of undermining the Secretary General. Mr Odoi must leave office because he has refused to apologise,” Mr Mukasa said.

Mr Odoi is accused of “insulting” the NRM Secretary General, Ms Justine Kasule Lumumba early last week when he described her on national television stations as “good mobilizer and dancer but a bad administrator.”
It all started when Ms Lumumba announced that the party was sacking over 300 workers including district administrative secretaries and officials from the electoral commission.
Dr Odoi was not impressed by the decision hence insisting that his EC officials will not leave their offices at plot 10 Kyadondo road and at the district level.

As a result, Hajji Twaha Songo the Chairman of the NRM district Chairpersons Forum called a meeting of leaders from across the country at Kati Kati restaurant in Kampala. The meeting resolved that Dr Odoi be asked to apologize or resign for what they called “acts of indiscipline”.
Mr Mukasa said on Tuesday that Dr Odoi has failed to either apologise or resign in a two day ultimatum and there was no other step other than petitioning Mr Museveni to sack him.

“Mr Odoi still has up to Friday to either apologise to the NRM party members and the SG and failure to do so, the petition will be handed over to President Museveni on the same day. We want him out of NRM and it will happen because he is not powerful than Amama Mbabazi who left the office of SG,” Mr Mukasa said.
He added that it was high time NRM members cracked the whip on “undisciplined leaders” because at some point, people will know it is normal to insult top leaders.

When contacted, Hajji Songo acknowledged there was a process of collecting signatures to kick Dr Odoi out of office but he (Odoi) still has time until the end of the week for him to apologise.
“He (Odoi) still has a one week ultimatum to apologise so that we cannot call for his sacking,” Hajji Twaha said.
He added that; “we don’t have any problem with Dr Odoi and as chairpersons we are not interested in what is happening between him and the Secretary General. But our concern is the indiscipline and bad approach he is showing because when you abuse someone, you are becoming too personal.”

Odoi fires back
However, Dr Tanga Odoi told Daily Monitor that he has nothing to apologise for despite not receiving any formal letter from the district chairperson’s forum asking him to do so.
“I have never received any write up from district chairpersons detailing what they discussed at Kati Kati. I deal with formalities and so I am waiting for any write-up telling me to resign or apologise,” Dr Odoi said.
Cash allegations
At the Press Conference, Mr Mukasa also accused Dr Odoi of “undermining” the SG by claiming she was funding people within NRM to wrestle him out of office.

“We are not working for Lumumba as Mr Odoi has been telling the media. He claims that SG has been funding us to fight him. We are saying no. If he the President does not respond to our petition in time, we are ready to demonstrate until Odoi is out of office,” he charged.
But Dr Odoi retaliated on the same matter emphasizing that Ms Lumumba has been paying people from within the party to fight him.
“Lumumba is bankrolling them with money. And it is this money were are asking her to account for. I will repeat that she is a good mobilizer and can dance to win votes but she is a bad administrator,” Dr Odoi said.

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