President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has appointed Odo Tayebwa, the former legislator for Ishaka Municipality, as the commissioner for cooperatives in the Ministry of Trade, Industries, and Cooperatives.
Odo, a renowned ex-supporter of the Opposition Forum for Democratic Change party, represented Ishaka Municipality in the 9th Parliament.
He recently defected to the ruling NRM after serving the opposition for more than 20 years.
Odo’s crossing shows the uncertain future surrounding the opposition parties and politics in Uganda, as well as the hope people still have in the NRM headed by President Museveni.
Odo is one of the few opposition diehards who were least expected to abandon the struggle and join the regime, which he had been opposing for over 20 years.
His immediate appointment as a commissioner is a sign of Museveni’s tolerance and good leadership.
“Continued disagreements in opposition reflect a sign of intolerance and selfishness by the opposition leaders. We have witnessed how FDC has disintegrated over minor issues,” said Haningtone Muhanga, a popular FDC supporter in Rukungiri district.
Muhanga said the continuous display of selfishness and intolerance by opposition parties and their leaders has won the NRM more credibility.
Odo’s defection from FDC is not the first time an opposition diehard is joining the ruling party.
It should be noted that the current speaker of Parliament, Anita Annet Among, and her deputy, Thomas Tayebwa, were also staunch FDC supporters.
