State House abetting corruption - Besigye
Dr Besigye at his home in Kampala yesterday. PHOTO BY FAISWAL
What you need to know:
As early as 8am yesterday, police had deployed heavily on Gayaza Road following unsubstantiated reports that an Opposition rally was planned at Kalerwe Trading Centre.
Dr Besigye accused the police of continuously “cooking up information that [he] will be holding a rally, having a demonstration”, so as to justify payment of operational allowances. But Mr Sam Omala, the Kampala Metropolitan North Police operations boss, denied the allegation.
After camping at his home and neighborhoods for close to seven hours, police later allowed the opposition leader to drive to town but under heavy escort.
Dr Kizza Besigye has said he is not surprised that people linked to State House are being implicated in reports of embezzlement of huge sums of public funds.
Addressing journalists at his home in Kampala yesterday, the FDC leader warned that the country was headed into an abyss, never to be rescued, if something immediate is not done.
“That’s what they call a top-down system of corruption that this government is running,” Dr Besigye said. He added that if the Auditor General investigated the huge sums of cash that go through the State House, the nation would be shocked at the findings.
“Why does it have to be President Museveni, the First Lady or the name State House mentioned in any big scandal that involves big monies? It shows the highest level of wastefulness the government is living and corruption has become the system of governance in the country,” Dr Besigye said.
Citing some of corruption cases like the Chogm scam, GAVI funds, OPM fraud, Bassajjabala compensations, all of which have been linked to State House, Dr Besigye declared that, “it cannot be prevented without first fighting the regime”.
Information minister Mary Karooro Okurut declined to respond to Dr Besigye’s remarks when reached for comment. She instead advised the Daily Monitor to contact Presidential Press Secretary Tamale Mirundi, whose known mobile phone contacts were, however, switched off.
Dr Besigye also expressed outrage at the continued deployment of police at his home in Kasangati where the access road to his home is barricaded and all cars proceeding to and from his residence are checked, and all visitors interrogated.
The retired Colonel revealed that he is seeking a court order to bar police from his land, observing that their continued presence infringes upon his constitutional rights.
