Government spokesman Ofwono Opondo has blamed the perceived wasteful spending, for which President Museveni continues to be condemned, on the MPs who annually allocate him Shs97bn for expenditure under donations. Opondo was speaking at the Capital Gang show this Saturday morning where Museveni’s Father Christmas-like recent generosity in Rukungiri district was discussed. Rujumbura County MP Fred Turyamuhebwa, in whose constituency Museveni’s Shs5bn was recently poured, was in the studio and read out NRM leaders who had created fictitious groups 5 days preceding Museveni’s visit and used those sham groups to con the President of hundreds of millions. To their credit, the Saturday Monitor editors published some of the 142 groups that have so far been identified to have received the money. Turyamuhebwa of FDC, who in 2016 defeated Museveni’s man Jim Muhwezi, explained that many of these groups are sham and actually don’t exist.
He explained that the manner in which the money was distributed (going to hastily formed groups without any investment plans) has since created more problems for the NRM in Rukungiri than solved. “NRM leaders are now in hiding and not less than Shs80m is at police as exhibit after groups started fighting each other,” Turyamuhebwa said as he enumerated names of influential NRM leaders based at Sub Counties who have since fled their homes after other NRM members and would-be beneficiaries began demanding for accountability for the money leaders are supposed to have received from Museveni’s State House aides, led by Lucy Nakyobe, on their behalf. He advised that if Museveni was genuine about empowering Rukungiri residents, he should invest in irrigation, education and health programs because these are things that are making people to become aggrieved on a daily basis. “The last time he came was like 2 years ago and he carried 600 bags of rice because people were starving because of the draught. That means he knows these people need irrigation but he disappeared and only returns now because there is a by-election. I can assure the Rukungiri people are going to punish him for that indifference,” said Turyamuhebwa who recently almost died due to absence of emergency medical services in Kasese where he had gone for Parliamentary work. The MP also spoke about the bad state in which the Kanungu-Rukungiri road is saying those are the things Museveni should be addressing if he is indeed development-oriented and well-meaning.
He urged the rest of the voters in rural Uganda to emulate their Rukungiri counterparts and always vote for the opposition in order to per take the Museveni goodies. “We know he [M7] is coming again soon and we expect at least another Shs2bn and our people will be ready to eat that money as well and I can assure you Mr. Museveni’s candidate Winnie Matsiko will not win that by-election,” Turyamuhebwa said adding that the GoU can develop and transform Rukungiri without Museveni having to personally drive there. He predicted the local residents will shun Museveni even more and thereby occasioning more political embarrassment unto him on the next visit “yet the money will nevertheless find its way in their pockets. Semujju Nganda registered his reservations insisting that its best that his Rukungiri colleague condemns both the act and method being used to pour money into Rukungiri. Turyamuhebwa seemed to support his voters’ right to access the Museveni goodies but only had a problem with the timing and the method being used to identify beneficiaries. Nganda protested this as not being good enough.
OPONDO SPEAKS;
Opondo agreed with Turyamuhebwa on the possibility of sharp NRM leaders duping the president and thereby distorting his well-intentioned generosity. “This isn’t the first time this is being done because in 2009, a whole minister duped the President to donate a pick up to his own father claiming this was one of the successful model farmers in that village,” Opondo said before turning the blame on MPs. He said it’s irresponsible of the MPs to just appropriate Shs97bn to the President for donations annually without imposing a formula guiding the dishing out of these donations. Turyamuhebwa had questioned why President Museveni spoke in Rukungiri as if State House had become part of his personal estate (told people this was off his State House budget and not the mainstream gov’t). And reflecting on other areas like Wakiso and Kampala where the President has donated to artisans, Opondo said the responsible committee of parliament should by now have followed up and produced a report critiquing or showing the impact the billions Museveni donated to artisans has had on the recipient groups. Semujju Nganda said Museveni’s office staff like Lucy Nakyobe had successfully blackmailed the MPs against doing that oversight role. “She one time told the MPs that you are here questioning me for this supplementary yet you are the ones ever begging the President and it’s this money that he uses to bail you out,” Semujju said of Nakyobe but Opondo wasn’t satisfied.
He insisted the MPs should do their work including exposing NRM leaders who dupe and con the President in situations of this nature. “The president is clearly well-intentioned but he is being let down by the MPs and other NRM leaders,” Opondo maintained. Erias Lukwago, who was also in the studio, said what has happened in Rukungiri isn’t out of character with the way Mr. Museveni does his things. “How can we be surprised that Shs5bn has been given out to groups in Rukungiri? I’m not surprised because someone who can give Shs7.9bn to one individual Beti Kamya can’t be accused of acting strangely when he gives Shs5bn to a whole community. Beti Kamya has Shs7.9nbn as Kampala Minister and that money is hers to enjoy because she has no budget, no work plans and has no accounting officer. What is similar though is the impact this money will always have on dividing the NRM.
In Nakulabye there is a lady called Mrs. Kafeero; she is a widow to Paul Kafeero who was a prominent DP leader there. Beti Kamya took Museveni to her home and he gave her Shs200m; presumably for mabugo [condolence fees]. This sparked war in the NRM because the group led by Abdul Kitata protested and opened a war on Kamya. They were saying but we have been supporting NRM for longer than this new defector,” said Lukwago, a victim against whom State House billions have previously been deployed. “However, I predict it’s not going to be easy. That Rukungiri by-election will end in bloodshed because those Rukungiri voters are well known to me because I have my second home there. The Rukungiri residents are very determined and won’t be subdued by Mr. Museveni. The money phase will end and Mr. Museveni will have to unleash the military on those young people and in the end they will vote for the FDC candidate.” Lukwago also contemptuously likened Museveni to mystery city philanthropist Bryan White who goes about publicly dishing out money without being accountable to anyone. For comments, call/text/whatsapp us on 0703164755!
