By Mulengera Reporters
During a political debate on Kabaka’s CBS radio (88.8fm) on Saturday, two of the opposition parties’ Presidents-CP’s Ken Lukyamuzi and PPP’s Saddam Gayira-ganged up to blame NUP’s Robert Kyagulanyi for failing to offer effective overall opposition leadership against Gen YK Museveni’s rule.
The debate theme focused on the growing security forces’ brutality targeted at opposition supporters, who show up to attend opposition rallies. Panelists were invited to suggest ideas regarding what, as the leader of the biggest opposition party, Bobi Wine should do to enable opposition supporters to effectively respond.
Vincent Matovu from Katwe, who represented Norbert Mao’s DP, blamed Kyagulanyi and wildly claimed that the beating of innocent people at NUP rallies was all planned long time ago to enable the Kavule Presidential Candidate to get sympathy and consolidate his grip on the number two position in the ballot box.
Ken Lukyamuzi decried the fact that, compared to his predecessors PK Semogerere and Kizza Besigye, Kyagulanyi had consistently failed to appreciate the fact that being President of the biggest opposition party comes with plenty of duty-bearing, instead of just eyeing IPOD money. He demanded that Kyagulanyi stops being inward looking and offers better leadership of the overall opposition instead of only focusing on his NUP.
Lukyamuzi, also parroted the talking points of his Presidential Candidate Joseph Elton Mabirizi who during the NTV debate claimed to have thrice driven to Magere to discuss opposition unity only to be ignored and disregarded by Bobi, proposed that Kyagulanyi deliberately reaches out to all fellow Presidential Candidates from the opposition and bring them together.
These can undertake joint activities including addressing a grand news conference in Kampala after which the rest can even consider pulling out of the race and rally behind Kyagulanyi as the man to single-handedly take on Gen Museveni.
Lukyamuzi added that there are many things which only Kyagulanyi can successfully do, including insisting on a united opposition, because he leads the biggest opposition party.
Saddam Gayira of PPP agreed with many of Lukyamuzi’s points and controversially claimed that both Kyagulanyi and Museveni are equally to blame for growing brutality and campaigning-related violence because it’s them who have the biggest crowds. He said that posterity will never forgive Kyagulanyi if he doesn’t wake up on good time and begin to lead better especially at this point in time.
Both Lukyamuzi and Gayira asserted that effective opposition from Kavule-based Bobi Wine will be much more needed on the morning after 15th January than has been the case during the campaign period itself. This is so because there will be need to guide millions of disgruntled Ugandans on where to go and what has to be done next after the Simon Byabakama Electoral Commission has controversially declared Gen YK Museveni (as is widely expected). (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
