Tentatively, the president wants the ‘No Bail’ bill tabled before the house goes on Christmas recess. However, the bill must pass by January before the president reopens fully the economy following years of restrictions arising from COVID-19 pandemic and it’s SOPs which included locking down the economy.
For now, mobilization for this anticipated tabling of the bill is ongoing but details of how it’s being done will be for another day. The intended passing of the bill by January is allegedly tagged to the fact that when the economy fully reopens with no restrictions including curfew, even hardcore criminals are likely to enjoy free movements hence the need to keep them in check and control in case of their arrest by authorities.
Our Inspectors have revealed that the president wants the speaker Oulanyah himself to sit in the chair, wear his white wig and robes and have this matter tabled and passed without any delay.”(Speaker Jacob) Oulanyah must prove his loyalty and ability to steer the house on controversial debates. We expect this bail debate to be hotter than the age limit. It will be a showdown especially if it’s not handled properly” a senior inspector alerted us.Already, Oulanyah’s ability to mobilize for Museveni agenda has been proved especially after he finally delivered the Acholi sub region in particular and Northern region in general to Museveni in the January elections.
For the first time in history, Museveni had never won massively in Acholi but instead, most votes went to the opposition.However, thanks to Oulanyah who shortly after ascending to the position of NRM vice chairperson for northern region, this time round the whole Acholi and north were painted Yellow (NRM).Inspectors revealed that Museveni had all along been nursing political ulcers after receiving an alleged ugly letter from one of the FDC MPs Regan Okumu assuring him that he would never get any vote in Acholi due to mistreatment of the people in that area.It emerged that on March 23/2001 shortly after the hotly contested presidential polls of March 12 between Museveni and then Reform Agenda candidate Kizza Besigye, Okumu penned a missive to Museveni assuring him that he would continue suffering such political misery in Acholi unless he addressed their concerns.
In fact, the Aswa county MP added a list of over 200 people from ‘sampled’ seven villages who had allegedly been killed by the army and stated that the Acholis would have considered legal action but resorted to the ballot. The letter is entitled ‘Post Election Challenges and Intimidation in Acholi Sub-region'”Your Excellency, following the controversial election in which you were declared winner, a lot of challenges from the Acholi region have been thrown to you. But many more intimidation and harassment continue to be meted on the supporters of Dr. Kizza Besigye by people in your government.
It’s a reminder of 1986 NRA harassment in Acholi” started.He cited eight points he called intimidation to Acholis among which included a demand that Acholis must apologize and ask for forgiveness for not voting Museveni, sacking of suspected Besigye supporters from jobs, accusations that Besigye supporters and veterans were plotting bush war, accusations of being LRA collaborators, marginalization of Acholis and putting Acholi sub region in a tense and militant situation because of the election loss.
Okumu reminded Museveni that much as they rejected him, he needed to exercise authority equally as president and promote welfare of all Ugandans.”Your Excellency, the Acholi ‘Spoke’ very loudly again during the last election. If you could only ask for results by polling stations, you will discover that in some polling stations, you got Zero while in many others you got between 3-12votes.
On the part of Acholi, I must state we have no apology or regrets. It should instead be you to apologize to the Acholis for the 15 years of suffering” he said adding that ‘if we were hostile to you, we should have taken you to courts of law or Human rights court but we opted for political approaches through parliament, direct talks with you etc’Okumu named some of the issues that caused Museveni loss in Acholi as failure to end the LRA war and herding people into IDP camps with no facilities.”Instead the government has committed troops and scarce resources to fight an undeclared war in DR Congo. The people of Acholi have therefore been left defenseless against rebels and criminals. The state has simply herded them into ‘protected villages’.
We could seek court to declare that your government, it’s organs and agencies including you have breached the constitution but we would like to settle the Acholi problem politically and locally. And if you do not handle the Acholi question properly, history will judge you harshly and push you to the dustbin” the letter accessed by our Inspectors reads in part.
The FDC MP who was at the time Reform Agenda coordinator for Acholi however, told Museveni that much as they voted against him, it wasn’t that they hate him but did so out of frustration that he (Museveni) had let them down.
He even reminded him that during his war against Amin, the Acholis sheltered him in Atiak and also in 1985, Gen. Tito Okello and Eric Odwar helped him come to power in 1986 although according to Okumu, the president turned against Okello and hit his back in spite of what he did for him.”As if that isn’t enough, you remember your operations and attrocities between 1986-93. In 1994, you allowed Betty Bigombe to negotiate peace but you frustrated her last minute efforts by declaring an ultimatum of seven days for rebels to surrender or be flushed out. You also remember the Hot question of protected villages.
With all that, what would you expect of an election results from Acholi” he asked.Okumu counseled Museveni that if he wanted Acholi support, he needed to address three issues. These included restoration of security, dismantling protected villages/resettlement of people in their homes and listening/responding to Acholi cries on Karamojong cattle rustlers. “We are willing to work with you as a people if you would listen to our plight.
We are not demanding too much but just one thing; your government should protect our lives and properties as you’re doing to the rest of Uganda. The attached table shows a sample of killings by government troops in a few selected areas” he summed up.
Museveni has besides ending the LRA war, dismantled IDP camps, carried out a disarmament program in Karamoja and above all, has posted Acholis in lucrative positions in government. For example, Jacob Oulanyah heads the legislature while Alphonse Owiny Dollo heads the judiciary.
He had also given them the position of deputy IGP only for Gen. Paul Lokech the holder to die unceremoniously. Dollo has already passed a hot test by upholding Museveni’s election victory. Oulanyah is now at it with both No bail and Anti-Mailo land bills soon hitting the floor of parliament. Watch the space!
