UGANDA: MUSEVENI SELECTS HIS PARLIAMENTARY WAR TEAM

 

By CHANGE OF GUARDS

Museveni has selected his 10 army representatives to Parliament.  They include seven of his most trusted and strategically positioned Generals; David Muhoozi, Katumba Wamala, Sam Kacuma, Henry MAtsiko, Peter Elwelu, Gen. Mbadi and James Mugira.  To fill the number he also included three female senior officers.  During their inauguration  ceremony, Museveni urged them to be his "conveyor belt sushi and listening posts" in parliament.  He went ahead to tell a lie that "Members of the Constitutional Assembly (CA) found it wise to include 10 Members of Parliament to represent the UPDF."

Museveni's army has always been in parliament long before the 1995 Constitution was debated and promulgated. When he took over power in 1986, he dissolved an elected parliament and, instead his 38 historical members of his National Resistance Committee (NRC) that included some of his soldiers, became the parliament of Uganda and he was the Speaker.  When he was appointed, Odoki led the Constitutional Committee, Lt. Col. Sserwanga Lwanga was one of the Commissioners.  This is not to mention other soldiers from his intelligence services who were seconded to the commission's Secretariat.  When he expanded his NRC in 1989, he allocated ten slots for the soldiers.  These included Colonels Joram Mugume, Patrick Lumumba and Chefe Alli.  Others were Lt. Colonels Santos Oketcho, Sande Mukulu, and Ivan Koreta.  The others were Majors Victor Bwana and Ondoga Amaza.  Not to forget Capt. Alihanyora who was the Director of Legal Services.  Among his 10 special appointees were two army officers,  Maj. John Kazoora and Lt. Amama Mbabazi. This is not to forget the army officers like Tom Butime, Mushega, Dr. Besigye, Moses Ali, Brig. Kategaya and Dr. Bata who were in the cabinet.  

During the Constituent Assembly (CA) (1994 1995), he selected 10 senior army officers to represent the army.  These were Aronda, Ssejusa,  Jim Muhwezi, Sserwanga Lwanga. Kiiza Besigye, Mugisha Muntu, Gyagenda Kibirango, Ondoga Amaza, Noble Mayombo and Jeje Odong.  He successfully pushed for the inclusion, in the 1995 Constitution, a provision for the 10 army representatives in parliament.  Since then, different senior officers have represented the army in Parliament.  In Parliament, they side with the ruling party position and those who have dared to exercise independence like Ssejusa, Fred Bogere and Henry Tumukunde, Museveni has withdrawn them unceremoniously.  Even when the law bars serving army officers from getting involved in partisan politics, Museveni has always been appointing them to cabinet positions.  

Therefore, it's not true that it's the CA that found it wise to have 10 representatives of the army in Parliament. Otherwise, how come the 1995 Constitution is 25 years old now yet Gen. Tumwine has represented the army in Parliament for 30 years.  In the first place, they don't represent the army but simply represent Museveni's interests since he is the one who selects them.  However, this time around, these are not ordinary army representatives but a kind of a special War Committee that will represent and vigorously argue Museveni's war case on the floor of Parliament.  That is why, during their inauguration, he told them to prioritize, among other things; "equipping the armed forces to be second to none in the region of Africa and I will not compromise on that."

Watch the space.

INFORMATION IS POWER AND THE PROBLEM OF UGANDA IS MUSEVENISM