Kampala-Opposition stalwart Dr Kizza Besigye might have his Christmas come early, if the excitement and number of people who thronged the Forum for Democratic Change offices in support of his candidature for party flag bearer carry on with their plans.
This morning about 400 people carrying placards and chanting slogans in support of Besigye stormed Najjanankumbi, the FDC headquarters, causing a traffic snarl along Entebbe Road and leaving the about 50 policemen deployed, dumbfounded.
Two days ago Besigye picked nomination forms to contest for the post of FDC flag bearer and is widely expected to give party leader and fellow contender Maj Gen (rtd) John Greg Mugisha Muntu a run for his money.
Both General Muntu and Colonel Besigye worked with Museveni but were later to fall out with the latter, accusing him of reneging on some of the ideals agreed upon while the National Resistance Movement/Army carried out a 5-year bush war that resulted in the capture of power on January 26, 1986.
According to sources, Besigye is currently out of the country but that he will be accorded a ‘hero’s welcome’ on his return. The source further said that Besigye had himself declared victory ‘because of the support’ he has.
The developments come in the wake of the formation of alliance, The Democratic Alliance, a loose coalition that the opposition wants to use as a vehicle to oust President Yoweri Museveni and his National Resistance Movement (NRM) government in the 2016 Presidential elections.
Although NRM says its flag bearer will be elected at the Delegates Conference, most people aver that Museveni, the NRM Chairman will emerge victorious and lead his party in the 2016 elections. As if to reinforce that assertion about 200 NRM Members of Parliament attending a party retreat at the Kyankwanzi-based National Leadership Institute (NALI) in February 2014 endorsed Museveni as the ‘sole candidate’ for party leadership.
But the endorsement seemed to rub then NRM Secretary General John Patrick Amama Mbabazi the wrong way, setting the two men on a collision course that eventually saw Mbabazi lose both his posts as Prime Minister and SG.
The Kinkiizi West MP has since declared that he will seek the post of NRM Chairman and later also gun for the Uganda presidency under the NRM.
Meanwhile, by the time of filing police had shot and seriously injured a youthful man only identified as Geoffrey Bbale,
Bishop Isaiah Mbuga is a senior pastor at Christ’s Heart Ministry international in Mukono.
God is to work mightily in the city of Kampala in a mega lunch hour prayer session set to open tomorrow July 1, 2015 at Mabirizi Complex.
The lunch hour prayer session is orchestrated by Christ Heart Kampala through Bishop Isaiah Mbuga.
Bishop Mbuga is a senior pastor at Christ’s Heart Ministry International in Mukono. The ministry is the mother church of the renowned Phaneroo and Koinonia fellowship (at MTN ARENA Lugogo where prayers are held every Thursday and Emerald Hotel every Friday respectively). Christ Heart has affiliates in Masindi, Jinja, Entebbe, South Africa, Kenya, USA, Spain, India and China.
“God is more than zealous to reconcile men to himself not only in Kampala but the whole world, many people are dying because of ignorance about His love and unmerited favor that purchased our salvation, freedom and redemption” says Bishop Isaiah Mbuga.
Adding “I encourage Ugandans to come to Mabirizi complex Plot 49 level 5 every day at 12:45 to 1:45 to experience not only his power but his love to us”
The Lunch hour shall host great men and women every day from Monday to Friday.
Dr. Kizza Besigye entry into the race is likely to complicate things for new entry into the 2016 race.
Dr. Kizza Besigye entry into the race is likely to complicate things for new entrants into the 2016 race.
editorial@eagle.co.ug
Former Forum for Democratic Change president has picked nomination forms to run for the party flag bearer alongside the party president Maj Gen (rtd) Mugisha Muntu in the forthcoming 2016 elections.
This makes it the third time Dr Besigye and Mugisha Muntu are running against each other, first in 2009 for the party presidency and later for the flag bearer both of which Maj. Gen. Muntu lost to Dr Besigye.
But this time if chosen opposition flag bearer, it will be the fourth time Dr. Besigye is vying for the highest office in the land, having shot to the limelight in 2001 with his Reform Agenda campaign which saw him putting up a strong challenge against President Yoweri Museveni, in the process overshadowing Democratic Party’s Paul Kawanga Ssemwogerere and Uganda Peoples’ Congress Aggrey Awori.
Besigye and Museveni fell out after the former accused his boss of turning the National Resistance Movement into an ‘undemocratic and authoritarian system and going against the original agreed upon principles’ consequently turning away from the founding core ideals.
But even when he lost all the three elections to President Museveni, Dr Besigye contested the results and in the first two, he sought reprieve in the Supreme Court, citing rigging. Court seemed to concur but ruled that the irregularities were not substantive to alter the results in favor Dr Besigye.
However, this time round Dr. Besigye’s entry into the race comes barely a month after various opposition parties and individuals formed a coalition dubbed The Democratic Alliance (TDA), where they agreed on fielding a joint candidate for the presidential election and other positions at the lower level, among other things. So, what is the implication of Dr. Besigye’s entry in the race having contested thrice and failed thrice as well?
When he lost the 2011 Presidential Election Dr. Besigye rejected the result but did not go to court like he had done in the previous two elections. He instead resorted to street protests like ‘walk to work’ in protest against high prices of fuel and the general cost of living. This strategy worked for him but the regime would not sit back and watch Dr. Besigye undermining its existence. In the ensuing political standoff he was teargassed, arrested, tortured and thrown in police cells. While Dr Besigye went through all this intimidation, most of his opposition colleagues were mainly laid back, but this was not before Maj Gen Muntu made a lone-man ‘walk-to-work’ from his home in Kololo to Parliament.
Given the apparent courage and mettle displayed by Besigye, the public thinks he is the best bet to represent the opposition, as opposed to Gen Muntu who many people think is so soft spoken and unable to manage Uganda’s opposition politics.
Political observers and analysts that spoke to Eagleonline welcomed Dr. Besigye’s decision arguing that it is good for democracy and competition most especially when you still have President Museveni in the race. It also acts as yardstick to measure internal democracy in FDC.
Retired Bishop Zac Niringiye said Dr. Besigye’s picking nomination forms is for the FDC as a political party and adds that he has always told political parties that internal democracy is paramount if a free and fair election is to be held. “It is good for our country unlike the tendency that we see in the NRM of blocking some people from their internal process which is rubbish and totally unacceptable,” said Bishop Niringiye.
Mr. Moses Khisa, a political commentator and PhD candidate at Northwestern University in the US, argues that Dr.Besigye had been reluctant to declare his intention to run for presidency in 2016 and instead concentrated on advocating for electoral reforms together with civil society organizations. In fact Besigye had always stated that he will not participate in 2016 because there will be no election without the electoral reforms in place. However, Mr. Khisa observes that faced with the ‘authoritarian regime that the NRM is’, which cannot engender electoral reforms that would help to throw them out of power, Dr. Besigye had to come on board.
He actually thinks that it was a waste of time for Dr. Besigye and other opposition leaders to move around the country advocating for electoral reforms due to the limited time left rather than consolidating their support.
“Dr Besigye finds himself in a dilemma from his critics who think that he is an opportunistic and power hungry leader who wants to cling himself on opposition politics, but being most popular opposition leader, he is one person who can’t just walk away like that,” Khisa says.
He also says Besigye’s declaration complicates Amama Mbabazi’s bid because he (Mbabazi) is still in the Movement and by the time the NRM holds the delegates conference in October, the TDA will have already chosen its joint candidate. Mr. Amama Mbabazi, therefore, faces a serious dilemma on whether to stay out of TDA process and challenge Mr Museveni within NRM, or drop out of NRM and join the TDA process before it gets late.
Acxcording to Mr Khisa, should such a situation obtain, Dr. Besigye gets an upper hand because if Mr. Mbabazi unsuccessfully takes on Museveni from within NRM he automatically becomes an Independent and Dr. Besigye the opposition candidate. This helps in dividing the NRM between Mr. Mbabazi and President Museveni. This means that the opposition support will increase while that of the ruling NRM is being fragmented.
He further notes that Besigye’s entry complicates things since he is running against Gen.Mugisha Muntu who is the FDC party president but also subscribes to The Democratic Alliance.
Mr Khisa predicts that in the end Dr.Besigye will be the FDC party President and consequently the leader of TDA while John Patrick Amama Mbabazi will be an Independent if he is to run.
Hon Phillip Wafula Oguttu, the leader of opposition in parliament, welcomed Besigye’s entry in the race, saying the FDC Constitution allows him to contest. “That is FDC for you, known for democracy because our Constitution allows anybody who holds the party card to contest as long as he is of the required age,” he stressed. He noted that it is going to be an ‘interesting’ two-man race and that whoever emerges victorious is the one that the party will rally behind.
Hon Nathan Nandala Mafabi is of the view that Besigye’s entry into the race is a blessing to FDC as a party because the latter is a determined and energetic politician who has the mettle to take on President Museveni. He also says the entry will energise the party as it had gone silent when Besigye bowed out of its leadership.
“People still believe in him as the strongest opposition leader to take on President Museveni and that he can bring change in the country,” he says.
Anyway, whatever the case, it is the FDC delegates that will have to decide who carries the party’s flag but Dr. Besigye’s entry into the race is going to play a significant role in determining the future of Uganda’s politics.
North Korea strongman King Kim Jong Un is reported to have executed many people whom he does not agree with.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un posed for one of his trademark glossy photo shoots in Pyongyang’s new airport this week – but a different story had unfolded behind the scenes.
Kim smiled as he posed next to chocolate fountains and espresso bars – but in private was so furious at ‘defects’ that he had the airport’s designer killed.
Airport design chief Ma Won Chun disappeared late last year, and is thought to have been executed after Kim voiced his dissatisfaction with the airport, according to The Diplomat.
Chun was executed for ‘for corrupt practices and failure to follow orders.’
Kim Jong Un issued a statement saying, ‘Defects were manifested in the last phase of the construction of the Terminal 2 because the designers failed to bear in mind the party’s idea of architectural beauty that is the life and soul and core in architecture to preserve the character and national identity.
‘It is necessary to finish the construction of the terminal to be an icon of Korea, the face of the country and the gateway to Pyongyang.
Executions are common in North Korea, with senior officials being killed for offences as minor as watching South Korean soap operas.
In May this year Jong Un killed his defence minister Hyon Yong-Chol with an anti-aircraft gun, accusing him of sleeping during meetings. In the same month he also ordered for the poisoning of his aunt Kim Kyong Hui, after she allegedly complained that her husband, Jang Song Thaek had been killed by Jong Un.
Jang, who was considered the second most important man in North Korea, was killed for allegedly indulging in corruption and treasonable offences.
Agencies
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un posed for one of his trademark glossy photo shoots in Pyongyang’s new airport this week – but a different story had unfolded behind the scenes.
Kim smiled as he posed next to chocolate fountains and espresso bars – but in private was so furious at ‘defects’ that he had the airport’s designer killed.
Airport design chief Ma Won Chun disappeared late last year, and is thought to have been executed after Kim voiced his dissatisfaction with the airport, according to The Diplomat.
Chun was executed for ‘for corrupt practices and failure to follow orders.’
Kim Jong Un issued a statement saying, ‘Defects were manifested in the last phase of the construction of the Terminal 2 because the designers failed to bear in mind the party’s idea of architectural beauty that is the life and soul and core in architecture to preserve the character and national identity.
‘It is necessary to finish the construction of the terminal to be an icon of Korea, the face of the country and the gateway to Pyongyang.
Executions are common in North Korea, with senior officials being killed for offences as minor as watching South Korean soap operas.
In May this year Jong Un killed his defence minister Hyon Yong-Chol with an anti-aircraft gun, accusing him of sleeping during meetings. In the same month he also ordered for the poisoning of his aunt Kim Kyong Hui, after she allegedly complained that her husband, Jang Song Thaek had been killed by Jong Un.
Jang, who was considered the second most important man in North Korea, was killed for allegedly indulging in corruption and treasonable offences.
– Shs1.8billion direct to FUFA accounts for national Team activities
– Shs2.2billion additional to promote Cranes through media and countrywide tours.
LOCAL Football governing body, FUFA and partners Nile special have renewed another four-year project to unearth talent and a campaign meant to garner Cranes’ support.
In what has become a story successful project with players making National team (Cranes) breakthrough using this country-wide tour, Farouk Miya, Ismail Watenga(goalkeeper), Muzamiru Mutyaba and Derrick Tewko among others are some of the notables that have made senior team debuts having made their mark from the “Cranes Na Mutima” campaign.
FUFA and Nile Breweries Limited under the flagship brand, have extended their sponsorship partnership by four years, worth Shs4 billion at a momentous ceremony at the Nile Breweries Limited plant in Luzira yesterday.
“It has become a “the perfect footballing channel” ever been thought, I remember Miya coming on as a substitute and scoring in Cranes’ 1-nil win over the Western region and the saying goes, the rest is history for the boy,” Milutin ‘Micho’ Sredojevic, Uganda Cranes head coach remarked.
In the new deal, 1.8 Billion will go direct to the FUFA account for the national team activities; 2.2 billion is an additional package to promote the national team through media and countrywide tours for over the four years.
The package takes the form of cash, communication during the national team engagements and the Nile Special Cranes Na Mutima tours.
“Our major objective is to improve Cranes’ country-wide appeal so that it remains a viable platform to associate with. We thank the brand for this vote of confidence.It is a firm indicator of the value that the brand has leveraged by its association with the national team” FUFA CEO, Edgar Watson noted.
The current sponsorship package in comparison to the previous sponsorship deal that was worth Shs1.2 Billion for three years, to October, 2015.
“As a brand we take special pride in local occasions that bring us together as Ugandans and the national team is such a one” the Nile Special sponsorships manager Isaac Sekasi reasoned that, following the previous campaign, which in spite early promise, ended tearfully “there is need to pick up our Cranes’ regalia again and get behind our team”.
“We are aware of the heartache suffered by the nation following yet another nearly campaign last year. But this is our national team. We have to make a conscious decision to stick with it no matter what. This is what we mean by Cranes na Mutima,” said Sekasi, who also pledged that the brand is going to utilize much all its available media properties.
To further canvass for support and once again galvanize the nation around the nation team, Cranes is scheduled to tour three upcountry destinations and play exhibition games with regional select sides. The regions earmarked include West (Mbarara), East (Mbale) and North (Gulu).
At the same function, the Breweries’ Marketing Director Daniel Ogong handed over Shs54million to Watson which was collected by fans from last year’s Cranes Na-Mutima campaign.
In the new contract Ruwenzori Bottling Company are the official water providers of the Cranes.
Katikiro and his team pose for a group photo soon after President Museveni handed 80 land titles back to Buganda kingdom.
gamme@eagle.co.ug
-Contributes Shs15m Ttofaali
-Bunyoro titles being processed
President Yoweri Museveni has handed over 80 land titles to the Buganda Kingdom and said government decided to return the titles so that the Kingdom can use them for development. He however expressed his concern over reports that the Kingdom is charging Shs 100,000 as registration fees for people using the various pieces of land.
“We decided to give the titles to the Buganda Kingdom Institution so that they may be used for development. I am concerned by reports that Buganda administration was demanding Shs100,000 as
registration fees,” he said.
The land titles were received by the Katikiro of Buganda Charles Peter Mayiga at a ceremony held at State House in Entebbe today.
The President said that the NRM Government resolved to maintain the 1928 Governor’s stand and decided to maintain the land rates as nominal and that the rent for land should be maintained as nominal and not commercial.
He said that the peasants cannot be subjected to the rental conditions and that this was his understanding with Kabaka Ronald Mutebi. He stressed that if the rates are commercialized they would create problems. He said that the NRM Government was not ready to proceed with an agreement that the peasants are not comfortable with.
President Museveni was pleased after being briefed by the Katikiro of Buganda that the arrangement was on a voluntary basis and that it is appropriate if a voluntary arrangement was put in place.
He warned that the culture of misusing cultural institutions for opportunistic purposes should stop.
“We are looking for a strong Uganda and a strong Africa. The NRM Government cannot go against the Kingdoms unless the Kingdoms go against Uganda,” he said. He warned that self-seekers should not be involved in politics.
President Museveni said that the land titles of the Kingdom of Bunyoro were being addressed and would be processed and handed over. He assured the people of Kyangwali that they would not be evicted. He noted that the Government has used it as a refugee camp.
He said that the Government was trying to establish whether the Rolls Royce car in the Uganda museum belonged to Kabaka Mutesa or the Uganda Government. He said that it would be attended to as soon as the facts are established.
The Katikiro of Buganda, Charles Peter Mayiga saluted President Museveni for returning the properties of Buganda and assured him that the proposal on the land rates was not a commercial one but a voluntary arrangement. He revealed that it is not compulsory but a voluntary exercise for the people who are willing.
He assured President Museveni that the intention is to ensure that the peoples’ pieces of land are secure and that those who are not ready or willing were free to remain as they are.
Katikiro Mayiga hailed the President for his contribution of ettoofali of USh 15 million.
The Chief Whip of NRM Ruth Nankabirwa revealed that they were moving well with the mobilization of the people of Buganda.
Prince David Wasajja of Buganda kingdom said that they were very happy with the implementation of the agreement it signed with the Uganda Government for the return of the property.
Uganda is one of the countries that will benefit from the opening of a Facebook office in Africa, the first of its kind.
Uganda is one of the countries that will benefit from the opening of a Facebook office in Africa, the first of its kind.
Uganda is one of the countries that will benefit from the opening of a Facebook office in Africa, the first of its kind.
Based in Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, Facebook’s newest business office will be headed by Ms Nunu Ntshingila, the company’s new Head of Africa, who officially starts work in September.
According to a release, the move is to further the multi-billion dollar company’s commitment to help businesses connect with people in Africa.
Further, the release states that Facebook’s active user population in Africa has grown 20% to 120 million in June 2015 from 100 million in September 2014. More than 80% of these people access Facebook from their mobile phones.
Nicola Mendelson, the vice president of Facebook Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) said in the first quarter 52 per cent of the company’s advertising revenue was from outside the US and Canada.
“We are inspired by the incredible ways people and businesses in Africa use Facebook to connect. This momentum in Africa comes on top of strong advertiser partnerships and excellent adoption of our products across all regions,” Mendelson said and added: Africa is important to Facebook, and this office is a key part of our strategy to expand our investment and presence across EMEA. Facebook is already a central part of people’s lives in Africa, and with more than a billion people in Africa, we want to do more to help people and businesses connect.”
Ari Kesisoglu, Regional Director, MEA at Facebook echoed Ms Mendelson and said the new African office will support customers across the continent.
“We know that a one-size-fits-all approach won’t work when it comes to building products and solutions that address diverse needs on the continent, which is why we are committed to creating solutions tailored to people, businesses and specifically for African markets,” Kesisoglu said.
Kesisoglu added: “Businesses need stronger, more flexible and less fragmented ways of reaching people in Sub Saharan Africa. Our mission will be to connect brands and consumers in Africa, creating value for all parties in the process.”
According to the release issued June 29 by the Africa Press Organisation (APO), Facebook will initially focus on growing its business in anchor countries in the major regions of Sub Saharan Africa: Kenya (East Africa), Nigeria (West Africa), and South Africa (Southern Africa). Other supported territories include Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, Mozambique and Ethiopia.
According to available statistics, Facebook, one of the world’s fastest growing companies generates US$1.4 million in an hour.
The Inzu Ya Masaaba has come of age, something exemplified by the holding of peaceful elections for the new cultural leader, Mr Bob Mushikori.
In the past there have been disputes in regard to the institution, when two people, Joseph Wash Kanyanya and Wilson Wamimbi, at one point in time claimed to be the rightful holders of the office.
Similarly, there have been problems of accountability and in March this year it was reported that the cultural institution was embroiled in a financial scandal, with officials allegedly soliciting for money from other sources and failing to declare or account for the funds.
In that regard therefore, the election of Mushikori as the Mukuukha comes with some challenges and one of his first assignments should be to help recover the mismanaged funds, and then to streamline the operations of the institution.
Mushikori is a seasoned man, he brings with him a wealth of experience and is respected for his wide international outlook and understanding of diplomacy after he served as the culture minister of Inzu Ya Masaaba in charge of the Diaspora and also as President for North American Masaaba Cultural Association.
That aside, the Bamasaaba should be hailed for upholding democratic values.
In its fifth year now, the Inzu Ya Masaaba institution has shown that it is a beacon of continuity, capable of preserving the cultural norms of the Bamasaaba.
And in the next five years Mr Mushikori should ride on that tide to steer the Institution to even greater heights.
Veronica Namanda talks about her life on stage and how she beat all odds to become a comedian.
In this quick up with Eagle Online’s Catherine Namanya,Veronica Namanda talks about her life on stage and how she beat all odds to become a comedienne.
What’s your name?
Veronica Namanda Kiwanuka
Which schools did you attend?
I went to Kako Primary School, Kako Secondary School Masaka for Ordinary Level, St. Mary’s Secondary School for Advanced Level and Makerere University for Bachelor of Art in Drama
Where do you come from?
I am a Muganda by tribe and from the central region
What made you join film industry?
I don’t whether know I have joined yet. But my first ever professional set was 2005 when I was selected to be a lead actress in Hand in Hand, TV soap by Great Lakes film industry.
Are you an actress or a comedienne?
I am both, because I do both but most importantly I am an actress.
What are some of the challenges you have faced?
There are several and off course, professionally there are few people who attend theatre, so it makes this industry virgin and will always face challenges.
What have you achieved in being an actress?
Being one of the few artistes who believed in this industry, ten years down the road, I can proudly say, I am proud to be an artiste.
Have you faced something like sexual harassment in this industry?
No I haven’t and I think in this industry it is what you decide to make of it (that matters)
Why do you perform better on stage than film?
It all depends but stage is wonderful experience and that is where it stops, especially in Uganda. Whereas film is broader.
What is your family back ground?
I am a first born out of six children, 35 years old, single, my parents are still liv
Democratic Party president Norbert Mao is to seek re-election, after he picked nomination forms
Democratic Party president Norbert Mao is to seek re-election, after he picked nomination forms. According to a list seen by Eagleonline, Mao will among others compete with Dr Lulume Bayiga at the Delegates’ Conference to be held in July and DP Spokesperson Kennth Kakande says many have shown interest in the party presidency and that the list is still growing.
Others that are vying for top party seats are; Hon, Mukasa Mbidde, for national vice president; Hon Issa Kikungwe, Mr Herbert Lutagwela and Ms. Mary Balimenay for party treasurer; Hon Mathias Nsubuga and Dr. David Dronyi for Secretary General, Kakande Kenneth is running for Publicity Secretary.
Meanwhile, as the party heads to the Delegates Conference, many party members are divided. The party headquarters have been attacked by suspected DP members who don’t support Norbert Mao.
Four were last week arrested by Police and the party offices are under 24 hour surveillance.
