{UAH} Makindye West MP Hussein Kyanjo (JEEMA) interview

Makindye West MP Hussein Kyanjo (JEEMA) was one of the leading lights of the 9th Parliament until he was allegedly poisoned, and nearly lost his speech.

He has since made marked progress in his recovery and, last week, he spoke to Deo Walusimbi about his health, MPs' performance and the exiled Gen David Sejusa. Excerpts:

Its two years into the ninth Parliament. Are you MPs still on course?

No. We have got some problems inside Parliament relating to the way we handle issues.

If you look at the way Kyadondo East MP Ssemujju Ibrahim Nganda and three other MPs were suspended and how they returned to Parliament, I think we need to read the rules properly so that we can act according to dictates of the rules.

Was the deputy speaker wrong in suspending the MPs?

The speaker erred because it is known that when you are suspended, you serve out the specified time and after that you come back. That is what the rule says. It was wrong for the speaker to demand an apology from the MPs after the expiry of their suspension.

What do you make of the deputy speaker's apology?

In my view he was not apologetic at all. He said an apology is a very simple thing in Parliament and we have urged members to apologize but since they don't think in the same way as he thought, let him apologize on their behalf to the House. So, it was not a genuine apology, it was meant just to pass time.

People say Speaker Rebecca Kadaga and her deputy are fighting. Do you share this view?

Yes.

Does it affect the performance of the 9th  Parliament?

It does and it is very unfortunate that there is a misunderstanding between the speaker and the deputy speaker. I hope they will iron out their differences soon; otherwise, the split will affect the smooth running of Parliament.

As an opposition member, are you content with your side's work so far?

We have done our best. When the budget was read, we came up with an alternative budget, which government can read through.

But people accuse you of fighting each other in the opposition especially among FDC members.

I don't know the details of these quarrels within the FDC. I have been looking at Parliament in general, you know my party has only one MP and our aim is to concentrate on delivering results the people expect from us. So, we don't put a lot of time in finding out who is fighting who.

The opposition complains of unfair elections every now and then, but up to now you have not introduced any electoral reforms yet 2016 is round the corner...

This is not new, we wrote a bunch of electoral reforms and handed them to the speaker in the past Parliament. What we are going to do is to compile everything that should be changed and present it to the speaker and the speaker will see whether she/he will put it on the Parliament order paper.

You still stand by your word, you are not returning as Makindye West MP in 2016?

Yes.

Is it about your health?

The issue of sickness came along the way. It found me already resolved to finish my job as elected Member of Parliament for Makindye West and I am still standing by that.

But people still consider you among the best MPs.

I was inspired by [Nelson] Mandela of South Africa. He came at a time when he was most loved and he went at a time when he was most loved. So I don't want to go when people are cursing me. I want to go when people love me and I can do some other things later.

Have you identified your replacement?

Yes I have.

Who is the lucky person?

I am still keeping him to myself so that he prepares himself; otherwise, if I mention him now, people will disturb him, so I want to save him from that.

You said sometime back that you were poisoned. Who poisoned you?

I don't know.

But do you still believe you were poisoned?

It is not me saying, that is what was discovered by doctors.

You are one of the MPs investigating claims of bribery involving senior ministers and oil firms. Two years on, where is the report?

The report is ready. We have been making final touches to it and we are about to present in Parliament. We met quite many challenges but I am not in position to divulge these challenges because I have to wait until the report is out.

What do you make of the current attacks by African leaders against the International Criminal Court (ICC)?

They ratified it but they have now discovered that there is a problem and they fear they could be indicted too. That is the root cause for all this panic and that is why they are all thinking in the same way.

But ICC's major critics including President Museveni have not been indicted and there is no sign they would be...

They haven't but they think they can be.

Can you justify your statement particularly in relation to President Museveni?

It is possible because if you read through the lines, you will discover that some of these things which happened in countries like Kenya which led to the indictment of its leaders can happen in Uganda.

Uganda also has its own history of people dying without any meaningful justification at the hands of government and it is connected in Congo, [and] Rwanda. You never know one time there might be some cause to indict the presidents of Uganda, Congo, Rwanda. 

What is your view on the fallout between President Museveni and his former spy chief General Sejusa?

Sejusa has his own problems but he has also new theories he is trying to advance into the politics of Uganda. Some people may not like Sejusa because of his past conduct, but they like what he says because it justifies a lot of issues in the country today.

One time I told the public that one of the areas where a state degenerates is when its own members begin to run out of the country into exile. I am trying to look at this as one of the seven stages of degeneration of a state. If Sejusa stays out and begins to issue statements contradictory to those of the state, then you know that there is a problem.

But Sejusa has been involved in incidents such as the Black Mamba siege of the High court and arrest of Buganda officials in 2008...

This is what I have told you, that there is not a lot of love for Sejusa but there is a lot of enthusiasm for what he has to say because most of it, is new. We need to listen to it maybe we may get some solution.

What he says right now is what we have been singing about in the past. So it helps to combine the two voices.

Would you love to join forces to oust Museveni?

Why not? This is what we have been doing all the time.

Can you endorse him to be your flag bearer as the Opposition against Museveni in 2016?

He cannot become our candidate because he does not possess the qualification that would lead him to be the candidate for the opposition. He is not clean but what he says is what we want to hear.

If the ninth Parliament was to end today, what would you remember about it?

These quarrels which led to the speaker to suspend some of the MPs. They  were the climax of Parliamentary behaviour because we saw strangers entering parliamentary chambers to eject a member.

Of Uganda's Parliament speakers  to date, who has been the best?

My best speaker so far is Kadaga because she has distinguished herself as a speaker for all and she has been fairly neutral in doing her job.

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