Supporters of the National Resistance Movement(NRM) party in Oyam district particularly Oyam South Constituency in Northern Uganda are terribly bitter with Uganda People’s Party (UPC)’s Betty Amongi after they accused her of meddling in the affairs of the party which has brewed endless internal wars amongst the members.
According to Mommy Othieno, a leader in the NRM party in Oyam South, the Kampala Minister is accused of trying to sabotage the party’s electoral process by planting her own brother Patrick Ebong in the primaries of NRM so as to facilitate a safe landing for her in next year’s general elections.
“It just doesn’t add up. How can you explain to me that for you you are in UPC, a Minister in the NRM Government and then your most darling brother comes that he wants to contest against you. We are not so stupid and we shall fight that of course,” Mr Othieno told our reporter in a telephone interview last week.
Another senior NRM historical in Oyam who spoke to us preferring annonymity expressed his frustration over the Minister’s lack of appreciation towards the party and President Museveni who appointed her Minister only to turn around and want to “bite his hills”
” This is really unbelievable. We wholesomely accepted this woman and even made her Minister but all she can do is want to have our swept out of the district so she can use our innocence to grow UPC here. We can’t and won’t allow that to happen,” said the audibly agitated senior member of NRM in a telephone conversation with Watchdog Uganda.
For starters, Minister Amongi is a member of the Uganda People’s Congress party led by former first son Jimmy Akena who also doubles as her husband.
In 2016, she was appointed to the cabinet in what was believed to be part of a deal that saw the opposition political party back the ruling regime for the Presidency as the rest of the other party teamed up under the TDA led by former Museveni Premier John Patrick Amama Mbabazi.
In 2016, she narrowly won against her closest challenger Patrick Obura of the ruling party to retain the Oyam South MP seat in the tenth Parliament.
Some observers from the district have since concluded that Obura’s career threatening challenge to the Minister could have prompted her to cut him out of the race beginning from the party primaries which would present her with an opportunity to participate in a mock exercise in 2021 making her victory a sure deal.
While commenting of the reports, Mr Obura confirmed the scenario but said he was ready to fight with his whole strength to defend his party. To him it doesn’t matter who they bring as long as the members of his party know who has their best interests.
” Well, I am aware of such a plot and it’s really unfortunate. I am however trusting members of my mighty party with hope that they will be able to identify with the most genuine candidate in the race.” Obura said.
In response to the accusations however, Mr Ebong a former civil servant at the ministry of public service trashed the claims as baseless and lacked any credibility.
Eventhough he didn’t clearly state areas where her sister had failed that warranted him to want her ejected from Parliament, Ebong said he is big and smart enough to be ordered on what to do even by her sister who is a Minister.
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