The contest between Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga and President Yoweri Museveni over the controversial 10bn COVID-19 cash was among the pressing issues many Ugandans expected to feature in the President’s address on Monday.
To the surprise of many however, the strikingly cautious Museveni made sure to avoid the issue that has since made a section of MPs draw craws against him since the negative comments he made about the House in his recent address to the nation pushing many of his former loyalists demonstrate how far they are willing to go in defending the county’s number three against what she has called ” an attack on the institution of Parliament” by the executive and the Judiciary.
Seeing himself dropping on the losing end in the contest, Museveni seems to have tactically seen how he had been ill-advised in the first place and grudgingly moved to make peace with the Kadaga led block in the House, or else have none to blame should the fearless invincible fighter from Kamuli choose to take it a little deeper, especially as we head towards 2021 general elections.
A number of MPs, evenly distributed from virtually all the parts of the country had vehemently vowed to defend Kadaga with their lives, suggesting that 2021 would be a pay back time for President Museveni should he go on with his unfriendly policy of alienating members of the Country’s legislature. “We are not to let this institution go down without a fight. We shall fight in defence of the institution of Parliament with the last drop of our lives” remarked Butembe MP, Nelson Lufaafa, sending shockwaves for the already Corona – troubled Museveni into submission.
On may 5, President Museveni announced that he had agreed to let members of Parliament establish and man Constituency COVID19 task forces which many have since interpreted as an admission of defeat at the hands of the invincible Kadaga. In attendance at the said deliberations at State House were; Government Chief Whip Ruth Nankabirwa,Budget Committee Chairperson and MP for Njenjeru North Amos Lugolobi, Finance Committee Chairperson and Rubanda East MP Henry Musasizi, Namutumba Woman MP Mariam Naigaga and PWDS representative in Parliament Sofia Nalule among others.
“I have held a meeting with a select committee of members of the NRM parliamentary caucas at State House and agreed to form a Constituency COVID19 task force across the country for MPs to channel their support to their constituents. This is to avert pressure from individual leaders.” Museveni remarked on May 5.
The revelation coming just a day after the President’s national address on may 4, in which no comment was made on the matter which many thought was a contentious one is a sure establishment that Museveni had already resolved to settle the issue in a friendly manner than he had handled it at the previous presser having clearly seen how much damage an attack on Kadaga was bound to cause for him.
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