{UAH} The Observer - NRM's primaries report pins Museveni, Mbabazi
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The Observer - NRM's primaries report pins Museveni, Mbabazi
Friday, 22 August 2014 04:18
The report, which is to be presented to the NRM MPs caucus at State House Entebbe this Friday, blames party chairman Yoweri Museveni and secretary general Amama Mbabazi, among others.
However, the report produced by a seven-member team alludes to the two men without naming them.
"We made general observations but did not directly name any individuals because even the people we interviewed answered using general terms," a committee member told us on August 15.
The probe team was set up in March 2014 largely to study all past party primaries and propose solutions to improve future internal elections. A member of the committee told The Observer in an interview last week, that the investigation found that Mbabazi used his position as secretary general to influence the creation of a parallel "NRM voters' register" while President Museveni took "sides by supporting some candidates."
"There is an NRM voters' register…even the president who is the chairman of the party and [Ruhakana] Rugunda who is the chairman of the NRM electoral commission, do not know about it…" our source said.
This finding of a parallel register led the committee to propose fresh registration of all members of the party. The source said the registration should be done before the party's next delegates' conference in May 2015.
"NRM members should get new membership cards before the next delegates' conference because the committee thinks that if we hold the delegates' conference with the [old cards], we shall have a recurrence of the confusion we had last time," the source said.
This proposal gained currency after Rugunda and his deputy Elijah Mushemeza reportedly told the committee that the party does not have a register of all members.
But when Mbabazi appeared before the committee on May 20, he reportedly expressed surprise that the two NRM election officials were not aware that the party has a register.
"We have it [a register] both electronically and in hard copy," Mbabazi reportedly told the committee.
Mbabazi is reported to have told the committee that he keeps the register at his private office on plot 18A Akii Bua road, which one member told him was irregular. But the NRM secretary general reportedly retorted that he could as well keep it at his residence in Kololo or in Kanungu. Nevertheless, Mbabazi admitted that the party primaries had been marred by "confusion."
He reportedly said that ballot papers got into the wrong hands because NRM did not have "its own printer to print ballot papers" which is "why the ballot papers leaked in the process of moving them from one place to another." The NRM primaries were marred by numerous flaws, including pre-ticked ballot papers.
As a result, the party received at least 1,500 petitions. The response to these complaints is said to have been mishandled, culminating in many candidates running as independents against the official flagbearers. Mbabazi's daughter, Nina, who was linked to some of the irregularities, reportedly snubbed the committee.
Party officials interviewed include President Museveni, Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga, Mike Mukula, the eastern region NRM vice chairman, and former NRM electoral commission chairman Felistus Magomu.
Museveni blamed
The Observer has learnt that the committee found President Museveni guilty of publicly supporting some candidates to the disadvantage of others. Led by Wakiso Woman MP Rosemary Sseninde, the probe team also had Maj Gen Jim Muhwezi, Felix Okot Ogong, Connie Nakayenze Galiwango, Teopisita Ssentongo, Dr Chris Baryomunsi and Stephen Tashobya.
Recommendations
Some of the issues to be discussed by the caucus include how the party should handle its district registrars accused of malpractices in the last primaries. One of the recommendations made by the committee is to have the police secure all polling stations.
The committee also wants to see an independent party electoral commission free from the influence of senior party leaders. The NRM caucus vice chairman David Bahati said on Thursday:
"The caucus is going to receive and discuss the report on Friday; after which, it will be made public. So, it is important you hold on until it is made public."
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