Thousands of ordinary Forum for Democratic Change (FDC)Party members are reportedly feeling outraged at the alleged embezzlement of billions of campaign funds, reports say.
The FDC, Uganda’s leading opposition party is in a state of deep shock after revelations that its four-time presidential aspirant Dr. Kizza Besigye, is accused of embezzling billions of party funds over a number of years.
The allegations could have significant ramifications for Kizza Besigye: the party’s strategic position has worsened over the past year.
According to Mr Balyaruha Vincent, a vocal party supporter, a Besigye leaning faction led by party secretary for mobilization Ingrid Turinawe has not been accounting to the party headquarters for the money opposition kingpin collects from his defiance campaigns.
A rival faction that aligns with overshadowed party leader Gen. Mugisha Muntu is said to be angry at Besigye over dodging to answer questions like when, where and how citizen’s contributions towards his campaigns are spent, calling it citizens’ empowerment not extortion from poor citizens as his critics claim.
It appears a breathtaking $1.5 million of party funds was diverted for personal benefit since early 2015, a source reveals.
While investigations are continuing, the Muntu group claims that ever since the election campaigns, people have been showering money and gifts and Besigye has been sharing the collected money with his small group of activists yet all FDC activists face the same state brutality.
The Muntu group claims that the grand embezzlement and the governance failures that allowed it to happen are above all an utter betrayal of, and insult to, thousands of ordinary FDC Party members and supporters across Uganda and in the diaspora who are not wealthy or personally powerful but are the soul of the party.
They also allege that Besigye has been moving around the world representing opposition and FDC yet it should have been the role of a party president, Mugisha Muntu.
The Besigye hierarchy will have to work hard to earn supporters trust back with the Muntu-leaning supporters who also accused the Rukungiri born politician of having failed to protect his February polls ‘win’ thus should be step aside for Muntu in the 2021 elections.
By Adams Sadiiki
