KAMPALA – The National Chairman of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), Ambassador Wasswa Birigwa, has said he is puzzled why party president Patrick Amuriat and Secretary General Nathan Nandala Mafabi are “panicking” about the upcoming Delegates Conference he has called.
The High Court on Friday issued on Friday issued the interim order blocking the conference which was supposed to be held on September 19. Justice Esta Nambayo will today, Monday, rule on the main application of the case.
But speaking in a television interview on Monday, September 18, Birigwa wondered why Mafabi and Amuriat are rushing to block the delegates’ conference he has called. Amuriat and Mafabi have disassociated themselves from the conference, saying it was not planned or budgeted for by the party.
“I don’t know why “they” are panicking. I don’t know why there’s a problem with me calling for the conference yet I have the mandate to,” he said.
He added: “The meeting is to present to the delegates what has been happening in the party and we decide the way forward.”
According to party insiders, the Birigwa-led faction seeks to use the delegates conference to pass a vote of no-confidence in Amuriat and Mafabi and then elect new leaders.
This is after accusing the duo of hobnobbing with the ruling party with a view to “selling off the party”.
According to Ambassador Birigwa, Amuriat has disregarded the party leadership structures.
“He has decided to do things on his own, NEC has to sit twice a month but last month, they didn’t sit even once. We haven’t talked about Amuriat and Nandala being thrown out of their positions,” Birigwa said.
Last week, Amuriat wrote to Birigwa, asking him to show cause why he should not be referred to the party disciplinary committee for obeying party rules.
But according to Birigwa, “no one has the right to fire me except the Delegates Conference which I had called.”
He lamented that the issues facing FDC are the same issues that have led to the conflicts in UPC and DP.
“There’s another hand in all these issues in FDC. Look at what happened in UPC and DP, same script. Let the court do what it does best and we see what we have to do. It will be very unfortunate if they don’t allow the Delegates Conference but if they do, so be it,” Birigwa said.
Ambassador Birigwa also extended an olive branch to Mafabi and Amurita.
“I am very good at forgiving, hopefully, one day we shall look back at all this as history. I am the only one who travelled with Amuriat across the country in the last election. I have nothing against Nandala or Amuriat.”
