PEOPLES VOICE

Anniversary #45 of The

Uganda Independence.

With U.P.C.- UG. Prez.
Her Excellence Mama
Miria Kalule Obote.

- Interview Extracts from The Monitor, October 9, 2007 -

Apollo Milton Obote was the main celebrant at the October 9, 1962 inaugural independence celebrations. He watched the lowering of the Union Jack and the raising of the Black, Yellow and Red flag of independent Uganda.

As Executive Prime Minister, Obote received the instruments of power as a final declaration that Uganda was finally free of its British colonisers. Obote who also led the Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) died in exile on October 10, 2005, a day after the country celebrated its 43rd independence anniversary.

Miria Obote (on UPC):
“We are building it by sensitising the people after 20 years of being in limbo including recruiting women and youth.” “We have challenges of financial constraints and that is a let down because sometimes we have plans we want to put in place and fail but that does not mean we have given up.” “We have amended the UPC constitution to suit the present times.”

On whether the party will survive
“The party is doing everything to remain alive despite everything else. The party should not go with the death of its father.”
“We have a strategic plan in place and are promoting reconciliation among members, especially those that went underground when the party went out of power and those members that had defected.”

Dr.A.M.Obote (RIP) 

Interviews:

Yona Kanyomozi:
“The party has survived. It is up to the survivors to bring it to the glory it used to have. They are putting threads together to be able to move on. It needs to reconstruct as it is the party with the best pro people policy for the people.”
On whether it is still a strong party:
“If it was strong as it used to be, it would be in government. The party has been under the hammer for 20 years, has been demonised by the President (Museveni) who was once a party member.”

Samwiri Mugwisa (Left):
“The party performance has been quite perfect. It has aired constructive advice to government and we have branches in every muluka (parish), although our people are a bit silent.”
On whether the party will survive. “We can recruit more members from the younger generation to take over from us so that the party will definitely survive.”

Peter Walubiri:
“The party has collected itself together, reorganising, recruiting, refocusing and preparing to win the next general election come 2011. We have overcome the shock and are matching forward.”
On whether the party will survive:
“We survived a 20-year dictatorship of Yoweri Museveni. He went to the bush to kill UPC but UPC has withstood with resilience.”
So the issue is not if, but when and 2011 is the date when we shall assume our rightful position in this country which has been run down.”

Joseph Ochieno:
On how the party has fared.
“Extremely well under the circumstances considering that when Obote died, there had been a 20-year concerted effort not just by the NRM but also other political parties and external forces to kill and muzzle the UPC, but they have failed. ”

“By the time of Obote’s death, he had achieved the return of multipartism when on November 17, 2004, the court ruled in favour of UPC that the ban on political parties was illegal and against human rights.”

“Since his death, we have held a successful delegates conference and fair and open elections for party presidency where we became the only independent political party to be led by a woman both in Uganda and Africa. And we are the only party that has 52 per cent of its posts filled by women and young people.”

On whether the party will survive. “We have managed to come out of the worst possible situation with the death of our party leader so we are going a long way. We are having a series of meetings and are restructuring. Come elections, we will be the political party to contend with in any free and fair election.”

- Monitor, October 9, 2007 -

Excerps  from Speech by The Uganda President Museveni:

"Independence means that we stop going by the opinions of other people or even letting them shape our destiny."

.......Museveni consoled the people of the North and East for the floods that have swept bridges and ruined homes

and infrastructure. He said the Government would alleviate the effects of the floods.

The President caused laughter when he opposed the Archbishop of the Church of Uganda, Henry Luke Orombi, who had implored God to cut back the rain. Museveni instead said the water levels had not reached their highest.

"I advise the religious leaders not to pray early for the rain to stop. They will confuse God. I know God is allknowing but don't confuse Him."

The President described the discovery of oil and gas as the greatest opportunity to improve the welfare of all Ugandans.

- Henry Mukasa, New Vision, October 9, 2007 -

Link: Idleness Haunts Uganda Ministers.