Opposition slept, now they must lie in a thorny bed
By Ofwono Opondo – 19th-25th July 2010
Firstly, let me thank Uganda Correspondent once again for asking us [NRM] to respond to some of the issues raised about the [present] Electoral Commission [EC] and [give] our very well considered view as people supervising the whole country.The legality and legitimacy [of the Electoral Commission Ed] should not be in question because it was appointed following all the constitutional and Electoral Commission Act [and] by President Yoweri Museveni soliciting, vetting, and sending the seven names from across the Uganda to the Appointment’s Committee of Parliament which has the powers to vet, reject, or approve the nominees.
The now loud and noisy opposition is well represented on that Committee by none other than Prof. Latigo [Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Ed], Kasiano Wadri, and Odonga Otto among others. The opposition knew very well that the term of the old Eng. Badru Kiggundu EC would expire on 17th September 2009 and a new one would be appointed. They chose to slumber as that term came to its end and only woke up late.
If they had not been asleep enjoying the perks, [politically speaking] they would have asked [and] indeed demanded with concrete and accurate evidence that the EC was incompetent, biased, corrupt and therefore unreliable for 2011 elections. They did not. If the Executive [Museveni] had ignored them, they had all the chances, liberty [legally speaking] to petition the Constitutional Court and perhaps even the Supreme Court to halt the re-appointments until their grievances are settled. Again they didn’t follow that available option.
Thirdly, there is nowhere in the constitution of Uganda where it is stated that the President, in constituting the EC, should publicly or otherwise “consult” with opposition parties, FDC, Jeema, DP, CP or UPC. The consultation is administrative and by parliamentary procedures where the opposition is hopefully well represented.
Therefore the gullible opposition should not shift the blame for their own failure on the President and NRM. They made their bed and snored while the process of re-appointing the EC went on and should lie in [it] however thorny.
Another thing that is often ignored by critics is that under the constitution, the President, even a mighty one like Museveni, has absolutely no powers to by himself remove a member of a Constitutional Commission unless a complaint is lodged, a judicial tribunal set up, and [it] recommends the removal of one or all of them. The former Aziz Kasujja Electoral Commission simply resigned on advice [and] perhaps from their political and family friends as a result of corruption that was widely reported.
Finally, if we claim to be championing the rule of law and order as IPC people claim, then all due regard must be given to a fair and transparent process in judging and firing public officers like Kiggundu and his team. The laws of Uganda prohibit collective guilt and collective punishment. Single out specific election officials who have erred or are incompetent for disciplinary action including sacking.
And above all, those [who] allege that a fellow like Kiggundu [is incompetent Ed] must prove their case before a competent court of law or they should just shut up. NRM trusts this Electoral Commission to conduct a free and fair poll and where there will be breaches, we shall petition the appropriate organs of government or EC itself for immediate and credible redress.
Since IPC claim they will win the 2011 election, they can wait for their turn and appoint a new “credible and competent” EC. In fact, these IPC fellows think they are clever by half. They want President Museveni to unconstitutionally disband the EC so [that] they can accuse him of not “respecting” either the constitution or due legal process. We can see the cheap trap.
Mr. Ofwono Opondo is the Govt Spokesperson and Deputy Head of NRM’s Communication Bureau
