{UAH} Allan/Pojim/WBK: Museveni, Mbabazi in cash contest at Namaganda burial
|
9:47 AM |
No comments |
Museveni, Mbabazi in cash contest at Namaganda burial
The burial of Bukomansimbi Woman MP Susan Namaganda yesterday briefly turned into a cash contest as former prime minister Amama Mbabazi and President Museveni's representatives attempted to outdo each other in contributing to the family of the deceased.
Mbabazi, an independent presidential candidate, had earlier offered Shs 2 million as condolence fees to the bereaved family. However, later in the day, NRM Secretary General Justine Kasule Lumumba came up with contributions that turned tables.
Lumumba announced a contribution of Shs 3m from the NRM and, amidst boos from mourners, she stood her ground, arguing that the money was solely meant to support Mbidde in time of mourning.
As the booing intensified, she announced a separate contribution from President Museveni of Shs 10 million. That contribution seemed to wind up Mbabazi, who decided to top up his earlier contribution with Shs 10m of his own.
The 31-year-old legislator died on Friday following an accident at Mpigi on the Masaka-Kampala highway.
PARLIAMENT SEND-OFF
At Parliament, a day earlier, the voice of Namaganda taking oath of an MP coming from TV screens in Parliament's central lobby roused emotions and her teary husband Fred Mukasa Mbidde had to be supported from the foyer into the VIP waiting room to calm down.
This was moments after Namaganda's body arrived at Parliament where it lay in state for two and a half hours, before a special parliamentary sitting to pay tribute to her.
Parliament staff were forced to cancel the showing of the video that had a compilation of Namaganda's works in Parliament. Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda moved the motion to pay tribute to Namaganda's contribution as a champion of the cause for fair prices for agricultural products to improve farmers' livelihoods.
Rugunda also told Parliament that Namaganda had died of multiple injuries and fractures that she sustained from the accident.
But the sitting turned into an opportunity for legislators to pour scorn on the government over the falling budgetary allocations to the agricultural sector and the increasing cases of death from road carnage.
"Statistics show that [around 3,000] Ugandans perish every year on our roads. Can the prime minister tell us the ground plan for improving our roads?" wondered opposition chief whip Cecilia Ogwal.
State minister for Primary Health Care (PHC) Sarah Opendi urged government to redesign the roads to save the billions of shillings lost in treatment of accident victims.
SISTER AS REPLACEMENT
At the burial, DP members endorsed Namaganda's sister Veronica Nanyondo to carry the party's flag for the Woman MP seat. The decision was announced by DP president general Norbert Mao whose speech was briefly interrupted by Museveni's campaign chopper that hovered above the venue.
The chopper carried Soroti municipality MP Mike Mukula and NRM deputy secretary general Richard Todwong. Mao had earlier apologised to the Bishop of Masaka John Baptist Kaggwa who led the mass for the interruption he got as some DP supporters tried to block Kampala lord mayor Erias Lukwago from accessing the venue.
Mao denounced the actions as uncalled for. In attendance was the Speaker of the East African Legislative Assembly Dan Kidega, Buganda Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga, Independent presidential candidate John Patrick Amama Mbabazi, his successor at NRM secretariat Justine Kasule Lumumba and the state minister for Agriculture, Vincent Bamulangaki Ssempijja.
Kidega challenged the government to improve agricultural prices in honour of the cause that Namaganda championed. Namaganda received a three-gun salute in her honour before she was laid to rest.
sadabkk@observer.ug
0 comments:
Post a Comment