Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, alias Bobi Wine, the leader of the opposition political party, National Unity Platform (NUP), yesterday warned other opposition political parties against fueling the FDC internal scuffles, stating that what is happening to their ally FDC can happen in NUP and other opposition forums.
“We must not celebrate when such scuffles arise in our allies like FDC because all parties are prone to such. It can even happen in NUP; it is all about time,” Bobi Wine said.
His prophecy and warning come at a time when the FDC is on its deathbed, arising from sharp disagreements among its top leaders, who are accusing each other of taking bribes and conniving with the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).
FDC has split into two factions: Najjanakumbi (Amuiriat Nandala) and Katonga (Besigye, Lukwago, and Ssemujju Nganda), with each side issuing party directives.
Today, Friday, July 21, 2023, Najjanakumbi has insisted elections are to take place, whereas Katonga has appealed to district party leaders to boycott internal party elections organised at Najjanakumbi emphasizing that elections will take place after the NEC meeting on July 28, 2023.
“The work of democracy has always been hard. Sometimes it’s been bloody. For every two steps forward, it often feels like we take one step back. But the long sweep of FDC has been defined by forward motion, a constant widening of our founding creed to embrace all and not just some,” Ssemujju said.
The recent divisions in FDC have prompted some party members in the diaspora to demand that Kyagulanyi take quick action against the Leader of the Opposition (LOP), Mathias Mpuuga, and Joel Ssenyonyi, NUP spokesperson, for being in cahoots with the NRM, before they split NUP like FDC.
NUP leaders have always alluded to the fact that some of their members have been compromised, as Bobi Wine, in a media interview in April 2023, accused his lawmakers openly and named a few.
The sentiments have recently been proven when Bukoto South Member of Parliament, Dr. Twaha Kagabo, among others, dumped NUP in favour of the MK movement, which is associated with the NRM.
The FDC was a political powerhouse in Uganda, and seeing it implode has scared other opposition party leaders into believing their own demise is imminent.
