The country's largest opposition party, Forum for Democratic Change has been thrown into further turmoil as Winnie Kiiza, who was last week dropped as leader of opposition by party president Patrick Oboi Amuriat has refused to vacate office.
Kiiza who has just returned from a trip in the USA told journalists at a press conference that she has not yet received official communication from the party and is only relying on media reports.
Besides, she said, Amuriat's reshuffle appears irregular as her replacement Betty Aol Ochan was appointed as the minority leader and not the leader of opposition in parliament.
The Besigye-Amuriat FDC wing still insists to date that it won the 2016 presidential elections, and as thus doesn't consider itself as opposition in parliament. However Kiiza said the same mistake was made earlier and has asked parliament to rectify it.
Kiiza also says the reshuffles come at a time when the term of the current leaders has not ended. She advised that the party president Amuriat should put his house in order and not be seen to be failing to control it.
According to Kiiza, standing committee chairpersons are supposed to serve for two and a half years, ending in December this year, but the reshuffle was announced prematurely.
"It would look foolish of us to do the same mistake twice - we did it at the beginning and they said; you know, follow the Constitution. I am one of those who have vowed to protect and defend the Constitution of Uganda. I wouldn't want to see my own party violating the provisions of the same Constitution….When we begin breaking the rules of the game, begin violating the Constitution before we get into leadership, we may not be any different from the regime in power that we want to chase." she said.
Kiiza has threatened to exploit any legal loopholes in Amuriat's appointments to keep her seat as leader of opposition.
"If there is an avenue that I can exploit to achieve what I want to achieve legally, I will do it. If there is a way am seeing that now it's beyond bearing, I can no longer achieve this legally, then I will also systematically follow the procedures that I think can lead me to breaking the law legally," she said.
Last week Amuriat accused Kiiza of being unreachable and unapproachable. Kiiza belongs to the Gen Mugisha Muntu camp that lost the party presidency to Amuriat in the last FDC elections. But Kiiza said she has been obedient and is in good books with the party, engaging actively in campaign with top party leaders and hosting top party leaders in her office.
According to Kiiza, she has been meeting FDC leaders, wondering however why she has been accused of not working with the party. According to Kiiza, the achievements of the party is due to teamwork.
"No way, it doesn't work, me, I have been in good books with my party, I have worked out with my party [and] we have achieved a lot together during my term as leader of opposition and actually during the term of the current leader," she said.
"He [Amuriat] was enumerating his achievements and talking about the accomplishments that we have achieved together if by-elections. We were doing it as a team. He was actually hosted in this office, Dr Besigye was hosted in this office, so how else did they want to reach out to me?"
"He [Amuriat] was enumerating his achievements and talking about the accomplishments that we have achieved together if by-elections. We were doing it as a team. He was actually hosted in this office, Dr Besigye was hosted in this office, so how else did they want to reach out to me?"
Kiiza, in counter accusations, accused her party president of holding unto elections grudges and going after party members that did not support him. The Muntu camp believes in building party structures while the Besigye-Amuriat camp believes in activism to force the current regime into concessions or out of power, insisting that the current political volatile environment doesn't allow for growth of opposition parties.
"The fightings that have been in FDC are; I think positive in a way. But in some way, there is a way we take them to excesses. They are as a result of the various elections that we have been holding at the party headquarters. The disagreements at the party headquarters after elections some people have wanted to carry them along with them. They don't want to come to peace to themselves and coming to peace with the reality," she said.
Meanwhile, Elijah Okupa, the Kasilo County MP says due to the 'unfairness' that Amuriat is exhibiting with the reshuffles, MPs who do not support his leadership can easily breakaway and make FDC become a minority party in parliament.
Meanwhile, Elijah Okupa, the Kasilo County MP says due to the 'unfairness' that Amuriat is exhibiting with the reshuffles, MPs who do not support his leadership can easily breakaway and make FDC become a minority party in parliament.
"You know we [MPs] did amend the Constitution that in the last one year people can cross to other parties without losing the seat…Those who think that those who did not support Amuriat should be thrown out, do they know that FDC risks being a minority party in parliament because out of the 37 members of parliament there were 8 who supported Amuriat. Assuming the 30 decided that remaining one year to leave FDC," Okupa warned.
The leader of opposition is supposed to serve for two years. Kiiza was appointed in May 2016. Kiiza promised to address the press when she gets an official communication.
There has been media reports attributing the reshuffle to the bad blood in the party, with some saying pro-Muntu MPs were sacked, while those in support of Besigye-Amuriat wing have been rewarded.
The leader of opposition is supposed to serve for two years. Kiiza was appointed in May 2016. Kiiza promised to address the press when she gets an official communication.
There has been media reports attributing the reshuffle to the bad blood in the party, with some saying pro-Muntu MPs were sacked, while those in support of Besigye-Amuriat wing have been rewarded.
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