‘We want power’

DP’s wasted advantages

Political pundits say DP has all the advantages of politics. It is rooted in the most populous region of the country, Buganda and affiliated with the largest religious denomination, the Roman Catholic faith—but has failed to convert these two advantages into national clout.

After watching the drama, Mwambutsya Ndebesa, a lecturer at Makerere University who is a keen watcher of political developments said the wrangles within the Democratic Party’s top leadership point to one thing: a party that is struggling to survive.

Ndebesa told The Independent that what is happening is a symptom of a party that has not been in power for a long time. He says political parties are founded to mobilise citizens to capture power but DP has failed at it for quite some time.

“I don’t think DP is struggling to capture power but they are struggling to survive,” says Ndebesa, a lecturer of history at Makerere University.

Mao, while appearing on ‘Frontline’ a political talk show on NBS accused senior DP members of failing to adhere to the DP constitution. He accuses them of abrogating their duties to the party as prescribed by the constitution. These include; protecting and furthering the solidarity and unity at all times; to protect the good name of the party under all circumstances and to explain the policies of the party, to carry out the party’s decisions and directives, to pay party dues regularly and promptly, to work hard efficiently, honestly and obediently for the party and to show a keen sense of responsibility guided by the principles of the party.

Betty Nambooze, the MP for Mukono Municipality and one of the most senior Democratic Party members who appeared on the same talk show with Mao disagreed. She said it is not the first time that Mao has given party members “those words of hope.”

Nambooze said the recent public show of dissent within DP is a sign of a “healthy” party but “We cannot deny that we have issues in the party.”

She said there are mistakes within the party and “some are inherited while others are a mistake of the current leadership.”

“For example, you cannot have an election where a candidate is the chairman of the Electoral Commission. That is not Mao’s creation; it’s a creation of the Constitution.”

Nambooze said: “DP doesn’t have an independent electoral commission; the organs of the party are not working.”

“We need constitutionalism in the party and we need to lead by the ethos of the Democratic Party: Truth and Justice,” she added.

Other members accuse Mao of not doing enough to grow and regain the party membership beyond Buganda and some would say Acholi. In the olden days, political commentators say, DP had nationwide membership including regions such as Ankole, Kigezi, Acholi, West Nile, Madi, Busoga, Busia, Bugisu and other areas in eastern Uganda.

The DP members of Parliament accuse Norbert Mao of side-stepping the party’s constitution and a failure to account for money in the party’s coffers. To show seriousness, they sought to have the Inspector General of Government (IGG) investigate Mao but were snubbed.

The MPs also accuse Mao of frustrating party grassroots elections ahead of the party delegates’ conference slated for March in Mao’s hometown of Gulu, northern Uganda. Some party members attempted to organize elections in regions they supervise but Mao cancelled the outcome.

Mao says he has been making his contribution in very difficult circumstances. He says when he took over DP leadership, it had been in existence for 56 years and the narrative is that until he came, the party was all peaceful, strong, organized and united. He disagrees.

Mao says, as president of the party, he is amenable to solving problems, even the toughest problem.  He likens running affairs of DP to flying an aircraft.

“I always give the analogy of a control tower,” Mao said, “Even the biggest jumbo jet like the Hon. Betty Nambooze flying at  50,000ft above sea  level in Mukono have got to get their signals from the headquarters but if she gets signals from Kasangati, then you have a problem.”

“Because you cannot be communicating if you say this airline is now… you are going to have radio confusion. From where I sit, DP has the problem of divided loyalty.”

It is these public exchanges that political pundits base to say DP is a party in turmoil. And attempts at finding long lasting solutions appear distant.

A seven-hour closed door meeting held in Nsambya on the outskirts of Kampala on Feb. 06 ended in deadlock. Mao said after the meeting that he had called the meeting to “ease tensions and de-escalate any conflict within the party.”

“You cannot solve a problem unless you have a common understanding of the problem,” he said in a brief interface with the media.

But even when Mao mustered a smile, his colleagues he had just had a meeting with showed different emotions. Television cameras showed the stern face of DP Parliamentary Whip, Joseph Sewungu, eyeballing Mao. On the other side was Kenneth Kakande, the former DP Publicity Secretary gritting his teeth as Mao spoke about what had been agreed upon in the meeting.