Mao wins again in DP

Tough times ahead

This is the third time Mao defeats his opponents in what initially appears to be a battle between one lone small fish against a shiver of sharks. But Mao somehow always manages to outmaneuver his opponents.

The 53-year old Mao has been battling this gang from 2010 when he was hand-picked to lead by the then ailing late former president of the party, John Ssebaana Kizito.

Ssebaana was captivated by Mao’s obvious talent as a politician; cocky confident, eloquent, and passionate about the party.

But Ssebaana was also idealistic. Having been the first non-Catholic leader of the DP, Ssebaana sought to give the party its first non-Muganda leader. Ssebaana and his predecessor, Paul Kawanga Ssemogerere, had run for president on the DP ticked and failed to defeat President Yoweri Museveni who appeared to have wider national appeal. So Ssebana possibly hoped he would infuse national flavour into the DP via Mao; son of an Acholi father and Munyankole mother.

Opposition came mainly from Nasser Sebaggala; the man who had succeeded Ssebaana as Mayor of Kampala city, and Samuel Walter Lubega Mukaku, who was based in the United Kingdom.

At the DP Delegates Conference of February 18, 2010 in Mbale, Ssebana fought hard to ensure that Mao, who was then-Gulu District LC-V chairman was elected. He polled 708 votes against Nasser Ntege Ssebagala’s 321 votes.

Almost immediately, his opponents formed a pressure group against him which they named Suubi; a Luganda word meaning “hope”. Erias Lukwago, Betty Namboze, Medard Segoona,  Latif Ssebagala, Moses Kasibante, and others outside DP like Semujju Ibrahim Nganda were part of it. But Mao remained unshakeable.

And his next big fight happened on schedule, five years later, at the next party delegates’ conference. It was held on July 24, at Katomi Kingdom Resort Hotel near Entebbe town, which is owned by former Vice President Gilbert Bukenya.

This time Mao’s main opponent was Kampala Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago. Together with Samuel Walter Lubega, who was a presidential candidate in 2011, Lukwago had gone around urging DP leaders and members to boycott the Delegates Conference.

Lukwago said the activities that led to the Delegates Conference were fraudulent as some leaders had hijacked the powers of the party Electoral Commission for their own selfish gains. He said the grassroots elections were marred by irregularities and the delegates had been handpicked in breach of the party constitution.

This was the second time Lukwago was attempting to scuttle DP elections. In 2010 Lukwago did not attend the Delegates Conference despite being a member of the National Executive Council (NEC). He accused the party leadership of violating the party constitution and the convener; the late Matthias Nsubuga, of holding the Secretary General position illegally.

So Mao’s only challenger in the Katomi race was then-Buikwe South MP, Dr. Lulume Bayigga. Mao again won neatly; garnering 898 votes against Bayigga’s 360 votes.

But back then, despite the call for a boycott, over 1,723 delegates attended. Among them were nine out of the 14 DP members of parliament.

When he unveiled his new team, Mao retained Jinja Municipality Mayor Muhammad Kezaala who maintained his position as National Chairman.  Fred Mukasa Mbidde, who is the DP representative to the EAC parliament, became National Vice President, Samuel Mulindwa Muyizzi, party Legal Advisor, and Betty Nambooze was Vice President Central Region, Mathias Nsubuga was Secretary General, Brenda Nabukenya his deputy, Samuel Kakande publicity secretary, Florence Namayanja the National Women’s Leader, and Issa Kikungwe the party treasurer. Kalungu West MP Joseph Gonzaga Sewungu contested for a position and was defeated.

Five years later, in Gulu, Mao cut a lonely figure. Of all the people in his former team, only Mukasa Mbidde remains by his side. Most of his new team is young, inexperienced, and without pedigree.

“It is shameful,” said Nambooze about Mao’s current position, “He went around picking people to be delegates but when you go to the grassroots there is nothing.”

Mao appears to have retained his coveted position at the help of DP but it has come at a very high cost to the party which appears to be in shambles. His next test will be attempting to put Uganda’s oldest political party back on its pedestal.

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