The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) has refuted media reports that its flag bearer in the February 16 2016 elections Dr. Kizza Besigye is to hold talks with President Yoweri Museveni. ‘‘The reports of the Monitor newspaper about Besigye and Museveni Dialogue are all wrong, with no facts. Both Besigye and the FDC leadership have not yet received any formal communications and are not aware of the rumor of a secret dialogue between Dr Besigye, who is currently out of the country, and Museveni,” Harold Kaija, the FDC Deputy Secretary General said today while adding the media at the Najjanankumbi weekly press conference.
Mr Kaija said Dr Besigye had expressed surprise at the media reports of dialogue, adding however, that the party was not opposed to a public dialogue, “which is open to media coverage, with a neutral moderator, neutral venue and a guaranteed implementation mechanism of the results.”
Reports of the dialogue emerged today, exactly a year after former Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) boss Dr. Badru Kiggundu declared Mr Museveni president after the 2016 election, which was contested by the FDC and Besigye.
“Today February 20 marks a year ever since Dr Kiggundu declared Mr Museveni as the winner of the 2016 elections; this has led to continuous suffocation of the mandate of Ugandans; a lot of arrests and court charges have registered scores,” he said.
In a related development, the government, through the Minister for Information and Communication Technology Frank Tumwebaze, has also refuted the claims of dialogue between Mr Museveni and Dr Besigye or the FDC.
Meanwhile, the FDC has said that it is not going to change the Constitution to favour individuals including Dr. Kizza Besigye.
“We have already set a road map for the FDC presidential elections and we do not amend our Constitution if we have an already set roadmap,” Kaija said, adding: According to our Constitution, there is no individual who is allowed to serve for more than two terms in a given office, but an individual can change and contest in a different portfolio.”
Further, Kaija said: “Dr Besigye cannot stand again to contest for FDC presidential post because he served his two terms. The same applies to Mugisha Muntu who cannot become the secretary for mobilization again because his two terms also got done. And Nandala Mafabi also finished his two terms in the treasury.”
