By Mulengera Reporters
Big-name Museveni supporter Norbert Mao says he has no personal vendetta nor grudge against Speaker Anita Among who he is seeking to oust in May.
He says that his Speakership bid is motivated by the need to “balance the boat,” a term he repeatedly used at his Tuesday news conference to imply the need to share out the national cake (country’s national political positions) in a way that balances out the interests of the country’s major geographical regions.
Responding to a question from Mulengera News reporters at the event as to whether he had actually reached out to Anita Among to officially inform her about his decision to run for the job, as he had promised weeks earlier, Mao said he hadn’t done so but hastened to add that there was no personal animosity between them.
He went on to elaborate that it would be ungrateful for him to exhibit personal animosity towards Among who he revealed had personally been there for him in a very generous way, during those very difficult days. He didn’t disclose details but reliable sources close to the two leaders say that Anita Among was one of the people who used to financially support Mao when he was still a ‘grassing’ politician in DP before he became Minister.
In fact, unverified reports show that Anita Among was among those who worked with lawyer Edwin Karugire on the Mao project which culminated into the DP President becoming the new Justice & Constitutional Affairs Minister. So, this is why many never expected Mao, of all people, to seek to unseat Anita Among. Some have likened it to cutting off the hand that once fed you.
It’s also true that key decision makers inside the Mao universe are fearful of the fact that the Speaker’s camp might even be having some sensitive audios whose contents once declassified and released to the public, could leave Mao politically deflated.
It’s against this background, analysts say, that Mao is being guarded and cautious in his attacks on the person of Anita Among. Should he go personal, there are fears people within the Anita Among universe could push back in a very damaging way and thereby leaving Mao with no option but to regret his decision to ever exhibit appetite for such a powerful position.
In his own words at the Tuesday news conference in Kampala, Mao admitted to being a beneficiary of Anita Among’s magnanimity and personal generosity though he veiledly also went after her by stating that he wanted to get into the office and demonstrate that it’s possible for any sitting Speaker to inspire loyalty and genuinely win the respect of the MPs she/he leads without having to become a “cashier” of some sort.
He also registered his wish to get the job of Speaker without having to engage in the vigorous campaigning, which he said that even the Parliament’s own rules of procedure prohibit. He said he had discouraged many big-name political leaders within the NRM party and the government from recording and releasing video messages endorsing and declaring support for him to become the next Speaker of Parliament.
He emphasized that he was running for the job out of necessity to honour his fallen friend Jacob Oulanyah who would like to see a better led legislature wherever he is; to help set higher standards on which future Speakers will be measured and also because duty requires that the 12th Parliament is led by someone much more capable than Anita Among. He also referred to the political sophistication, proceeding to assert that the Anita Among ascendance to the office of Speaker was an accident as opposed to being a planned happening.
He explained the need for a more sophisticated person by claiming that the 12th Parliament is going to have lots of obligations to play in the next five years, including midwifing the political transition which he believes is increasingly becoming inevitable because of the biological limitations that will have to cripple Gen Museveni at some point.
Mao said its largely because of necessity that he has found himself with no option but to offer himself for the position of Uganda’s number three in the national hierarchy.
Anita Among, who would be excused to feel betrayed by Mao’s declaration, is yet to respond not just to the new Loro-Pece legislator but also to other equally combative challengers including Persis Namuganza and Lydia Wanyoto whose eloquence is one of the best-selling points she has. Namuganza’s biggest selling point is courage and fearlessness.
Mao also explained that it would be imprudent to allow Teso sub region, which already has the Vice President, Deputy CDF, the Auditor General and Governor Bank of Uganda to be allowed to retain the position of Speaker when important geographical regions like Buganda and the Greater north are abandoned to continue being in the cold.
Mao wasn’t ashamed of stating that with Alfonse Owiny Dollo out of the Chief Justice position, the most prudent thing would be allowing Northerners to produce the next Speaker of Parliament. He added that with the President and new Chief Justice coming from Gen Museveni’s birth place, it’s appropriate for anyone to perceive Westerners as already eating enough.
He reiterated the fact that he wasn’t intimidated by the excessive money the incumbent Speaker is alleged to be having because his cause was rooted in profound conviction and not in opulent materialism. He likened himself to the Biblical David and the incumbent Speaker to the Goliath, a gigantic figure in the Bible who was unexpectedly defeated and overcome by David because he had faith and conviction that standing up to the bully was the right thing to do.
“I don’t have to act like Goliath in order to be able to defeat Goliath,” Mao rhetorically responded to a question the Spark TV journalist had raised his question demanding to know how prepared he was to match Anita Among’s alleged deep pockets and abrasive personality. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
