{UAH} Pojim/WBK: The enigma of Mbabazi shakes NRM - News
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The enigma of Mbabazi shakes NRM
Former prime minister Amama Mbabazi. PHOTO | ABUBAKER LUBOWA
Former Ugandan prime minister and now presidential aspirant Amama Mbabazi has suspended his programme to meet voters across the country following his arrest on Thursday.
The first meeting had been scheduled to start in the eastern town of Mbale, but days before, the police deployed heavily to block it.
Mr Mbabazi's camp said a new programme for the meetings is to be issued, adding that voters in Mbale, who were denied the opportunity to meet the former premier, have sued the government for intimidation.
"Even before this happened, the voters of Mbale had already filed a lawsuit, challenging the legality of threats and actions by security to block the meetings; they are seeking damages in billions of shillings for the losses and intimidation they have suffered," Fred Muwema, Mr Mbabazi's lawyer told The EastAfrican.
Mr Mbabazi was arrested by police director of operations Andrew Felix Kaweesi near Jinja town as he drove to Mbale and was driven back to Kampala. The former premier and ruling party secretary general was held for 12 hours, before being released without charges.
"We will soon issue a new programme, and continue the consultations because their actions are not founded in the law," Mr Muwema added.
The police said the Mbale meeting that Mr Mbabazi was planning to address violated the Public Order Management Act, a law the former prime minister authored and defended while he was still leader of government business.
"This is an illegal meeting. They should act according to the police proclamation. If you ask me another question, I will put you in," Bukedea Sector deputy commander Sam Omala, flanked by Elgon region police chief Jacob Opolot, warned The EastAfrican.
When asked which part of the Act gave the police the powers to stop the meetings, the police chief said: "Go away or I will arrest you if you stay here one more second."
The law requires people who intend to hold public meetings to inform the police. However, police bosses have taken this further to mean that the police have the power to sanction or veto such meetings.
Echoing the comments of army renegade Gen David Sejusa on a July 9 night talk show on NTV, Mr Mbabazi blamed his arrest on President Yoweri Museveni.
During the "On the Spot" show that airs Thursday nights on NTV, Gen Sejusa argued that every unlawful operation carried out in recent times and all orders to arrest leading politicians who oppose the regime originate from President Museveni himself and not any commander of the security forces.
"All these commanders you see around, they cannot even move a section of the army without President Museveni's order," he said, referring to the arrest of Mr Mbabazi and his own detention a few weeks ago when security forces pounced on him in the capital. The only other time Mr Mbabazi was ever arrested was during the Idi Amin dictatorship in 1976.
That Mr Mbabazi, who was arrested with his daughter, equated this experience to the Idi Amin era, is a telling statement on how the rule of law has degenerated under the Museveni-led regime, which the former prime minister has served under for 29 years.
But President Museveni's orders, Gen Sejusa argues, are reflections of deeper fears within the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), which until now has failed to measure the extent of Mr Mbabazi's capacity to dent to dent the president ability to remain in power.
The fears revolve around the amount of money Mr Mbabazi has to fund the consultations, and eventually, the campaigns during the primaries. In a recent interview with The Observer newspaper, Speaker of parliament and National Resistance Movement second vice chair for eastern Uganda Rebecca Kadaga claimed that people supporting gays were funding politicians, including the former premier.
Fears abound that Mr Mbabazi's reported war-chest will enable him to battle President Museveni, who is also chairman of NRM.
Even before the official campaigns for the 2016 elections kick off, President Museveni has used his control of state coffers to bankroll his early campaign, dishing out billions of shillings to different voter groups.
Before the security forces under the Bukedea Sector deputy commander Sam Omala intervened to disperse the small crowd that had gathered in Mbale to listen to Mr Mbabazi, talk of "rented support in the party" and "hunger for money" were chorused among those present.
An army veteran, who declined to be named, told The EastAfrican that: "What makes you think these people are genuine supporters of Mbabazi? Most of them have never even seen him. These people are after money; they are just here because they know there is money coming. Others in the crowd were also candid about their presence at the meeting venue, cursing the police for intervention that will deny us cash," he said.
"Why are they interfering? I support Amama Mbabazi; I spent money to come here. Do they expect me to walk back home?" said John Chemoro, a registered voter in Mbale.
Indeed, as the police were arresting Mr Mbabazi near Jinja — some 143km away from the Mbale meeting venue — a register was going around; by last count, 125 people had registered, each expecting unspecified amounts of money as transport refund, depending on the distances they had travelled for the aborted meeting.
President Museveni's camp in the NRM, which is fused with the state and has access to state coffers, and that of Mr Mbabazi, which critics claim is bankrolled by powerful foreign lobby groups, are clearly better funded than those of other presidential hopefuls.
Opposition legislator Betty Nambooze argues that as was the case in 2011, the 2016 elections will be won on the basis of who has the most money, except this time around, the spending, which has already begun, will be bigger, heralding a wave of unprecedented inflation in the Ugandan economy.
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