A good number of leaders at the Kamwokya-based National Unity Platform (NUP) were left in shock after one of their own openly asked principal Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine to hold talks with President Yoweri Kaguta Tibuhaburwa Museveni.
Former presidential candidate and now Kimaanya-Kabonera MP Abed Bwanika has told Bobi Wine it is high time he agreed to meet President Museveni so that the head of state can release incacerated NUP members.
“Many youth who supported us are still incarcerated and I think it’s the right time now to meet the government and negotiate with them to release these innocent young people. There is nothing we have not done, we have boycotted parliamentary settings, nothing has changed,” said MP Bwanika.
“Many of these young people are in a dire state, they need help, their families are also suffering. This is the high time we tried negotiations and stop cheap politics while other people, our own people are suffering.”
Bwanika also made it clear to Bobi Wine that it made no sense to sacrifice the lives of incarcerated activists for the so-called credibility of the opposition party.
“The lives of those innocent incarcerated youth, their families and relatives are as important as the struggle; we should not forget that. No wonder most people against this idea of negotiation are free and have not been incarcerated for over a year,” said Bwanika.
“I have had some people saying that if we negotiate with NRM we will lose credibility as a party, why should we focus on the credibility of the party at the expense of lives of innocent Ugandans who have been tortured for our sake, we are in these positions because of them.”
But NUP spokesperson Joel Ssenyonyi has urged Bwanika to remind Museveni to respect the laws of the land.
“What does he want us to negotiate about? The anti-torture law is very clear, does Hon Bwanika want us to go and kneel before President Museveni and say we are sorry for speaking against corruption, bad leadership and torture?” wondered Ssenyonyi, the Nakawa West MP.
“We are not breaking any law, therefore, there is no need for negotiations whatsoever.”
Additional reporting: Courtesy
