The Democratic Party last week petitioned parliament against vetting the newly-appointed Electoral Commission (EC) chiefs led by Justice Simon Byabakama.
Submitting his petition Thursday, DP president general Norbert Mao told speaker Rebecca Kadaga that Museveni betrayed the opposition by going against a promise he made to the Inter-Party Organisation for Dialogue (IPOD) during a July 2016 meeting at State House.
“What the president has done amounts to bad faith,” Mao said. “It undermines the spirit of dialogue and it is making all of us who have always believed we can have meaningful engagement with the NRM to also throw our hands in the air and say ‘we are talking to ourselves, and no one is listening’.”
Mao led top officials from DP, who included secretary general Matthias Nsubuga, to a closed-door meeting in Kadaga’s boardroom at Parliament. Mao says that in July, Museveni had appeared to agree that there was need to change the procedure for appointing electoral commissioners.
Museveni reportedly instructed prime minister Ruhakana Rugunda, to convene a meeting in August to discuss the matter. He said Museveni promised there would be a follow-up meeting of stakeholders to ensure that the process of appointing a new EC would be inclusive in order that all political actors enter the arena of competition, with full confidence in the independence and impartiality of the referee.
“We were shocked that the president came up with the names while we are waiting for IPOD to be the forum through which we would resolve our differences on the constitution of the Commission. I am sure the president will admit that he made an undertaking that there would be dialogue this time round on this,” Mao said.
Last week, Museveni appointed six commissioners to replace Badru Kiggundu’s team. Justice Simon Byabakama (chairman) is to be deputized by Hajjati Aisha Lubega. Other commissioners are Peter Emorut, former Kajara MP Stephen Tashobya, Professor George Piwang and Mustapha Ssebaggala Kigozi.
The names have been forwarded to the speaker, who chairs the Appointments committee that will vet the nominees. While some quarters welcomed the appointment of the new commissioners, the new changes did not come without condemnation from sections of the opposition. Mao lamented that proceeding with the vetting of the nominees will only heighten political tensions in the country.
Later, Mao also handed a copy of the petition to the leader of opposition in parliament, Winnie Kiiza. Kiiza, also Kasese Woman MP, acknowledged the prayers of DP, saying government poured cold water on pleas to include the Citizens’ Compact on Free and Fair Elections, a catalogue of electoral reforms by civil society and opposition, in the constitutional amendments last year.
“If the game is to be fair, then the referee must also be fair. Through the citizen’s compact, there were suggestions for an independent commission composed of independent people but this was in vain,” Kiiza said.
Kiiza revealed that she will table the matter before the House for debate.
newseditor@observer.ug