Besigye commits to ‘Fight to the grave’ in push to liberate Uganda

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Former Forum for Democratic Change- FDC party president Dr Kizza Besigye has reaffirmed that he will not stop fighting for his rights and those of citizens until he breaks dead.

Besigye said that every Ugandan has a civic duty to reclaim their rights and respect, adding that without these, the expectation of a free and fair election becomes a nightmare. This’ he said while delivering his end of year address, at his home in Kasangati, wakiso district, where he declared 2020 as a year of ‘double action.’

Earlier in the year, Dr Besigye had declared 2019 as a year of action with three steps through which the country would be liberated. They included civic awareness, organisation and having political structures across the country.

Yesterday, he said, they have largely paid attention to the squabbles within the opposition groups in addition to entrenching themselves firmly in all parts of the country.

Dr Besigye added that in 2020, the opposition front plans to engage all forces of change towards fielding one candidate in the forthcoming presidential elections. He also cautioned pro-change activists against attacking themselves.

Besigye explains that Ugandans must focus on sanitizing and cleaning the institutions that will deliver to the citizen’s desires if they want to have free and fair elections. He pointed out that his ‘People’s Government’ had already challenged in court the legality of the Electoral Commission Chairman Engineer Simon Byabakama Mugenyi and the commission’s secretary Sam Rwakoojo.

According to Besigye, Justice Byabakama is still receiving a salary as a judicial officer and as the head of the electoral body, an act which constitutes illegality.

Dr Besigye also reflected on some of the court decisions that characterized the year 2019, pointing out a recent constitutional court judgement that threw six legislators out of parliament and his application asking court to nullify the offence of unlawful assembly in the penal code Act, which was dismissed last month by a panel of five Constitutional court judges.

The judges noted that since Besigye argues that there is no validly elected government, he should seek the audience before his own court or before the “judge” who swore him in as President.  But to Besigye, the judgement stimulates Ugandans to know that they should struggle to ensure they put in place a justice system that works for them.

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