Akena got Shs1b from Museveni - UPC official

Lira.

Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) president Jimmy Akena yesterday dismissed allegations by a senior party official that he had pocketed Shs1 billion to sign off an agreement with President Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) that will see the Opposition party offer support to the incumbent’s 2016 re-election bid.

Mr Joseph Bbosa, the UPC vice president under the Olara Otunnu faction, who has constantly labelled Mr Akena an NRM mole, had claimed yesterday, in the wake of emerging details of the alliance, that Mr Akena had been financially compensated to enter into the alliance.

“I have been telling you Akena was planted by Museveni and this alliance is about ‘I give you money, you give me UPC’. That is what Akena did. Museveni gave him close to Shs1 billion for this alliance. Every cloud has a silver lining,” Mr Bbosa said.

UPC not for sale
However, Mr Akena, who yesterday confirmed the alliance with Mr Museveni’s NRM, dismissed Mr Bbosa’s allegations as “total nonsense”.

“UPC is not for sale, it has never been for sale and it will never be for sale. I will address a press conference tomorrow to clear this matter,” he said by telephone.

Details of Mr Akena’s latest working arrangement with Mr Museveni first came to light at the weekend after the President told a press conference at Baralegi State Lodge in Otuke that the UPC group led by Mr Akena was working with his people.

Yesterday, NRM deputy secretary general Richard Todwong, who was reported to have signed on behalf of the NRM, said: “In politics, everything is possible but I do not want to comment now”.

Mr Akena said there was agreement but at the level of individual party members since the party is not fronting a presidential candidate in the 2016 race.

“UPC members are listening to different voices [presidential candidates]. There are members supporting Kizza Besigye, Amama Mbabazi and Museveni,” Mr Akena said.

He gave an example of his predecessor, Mr Olara Otunnu, who is supporting the Go Forward pressure group of candidate Mbabazi.
“On a personal note, I am looking at the future of this country. We want a peaceful transition but Museveni must be part of it. And constitutionally, he will not stand in 2021, he will be above 75 years,” Mr Akena said.

Article 103(b) of the Constitution bars a person under the age of 35 and above 75 to be elected president.
Mr Akena is a son of Dr Milton Obote, whose second regime was toppled by his army commanders in 1985, before Mr Museveni’s National Resistance Army eventually overthrew the coup plotters.

Mr Obote once said in an interview with then Daily Monitor journalist Andrew Mwenda, that he disliked Mr Museveni to the extent he would not even share a room for a meeting with him.
Mr Bossa said UPC members are planning to have a meeting to see how they will deal with the situation but will not allow UPC to be sold by Mr Akena.

Political commentator Crispy Kaheru said although alliances are common during the election period, “this alliance seems to be an element of a long-standing strategy of NRM to kill UPC as a political party especially so after the NRM fought UPC out of power in (1986)”.

Background
Mr Museveni has previously accused UPC which was in power twice of running down the national economy, presiding over extrajudicial killings and violation of human rights. Mr Museveni once said he would not touch Obote even with a long stick. After Obote’s death, Mr Museveni seems to have softened the stance, visiting Miria Obote, Mr Obote’s widow and awarding Mr Alena a hero’s medal.