Bobi Wine is too childish to be an MP; Kantinti

Bobi Wine is too childish to be an MP; Kantinti

FDC flag bearer for the Kyadondo East by-election Hon. Apollo Kantinti has talked to Spear News about the challenges of the campaign and his main rival [Bobi Wines] comments that he [Kantinti] did nothing in the one year he has been in parliament.

Excerpts

Are you in panic as your opponents say?

It’s them going around social media saying that I am out of the race, so who is in panic? They still accuse me of being quite but I kept on with my campaign systematically. They have thrown all kind of jabs at me, but this is not the kind of campaign that I would like to run and such cannot get me to win, we are steady and the victory is in our reach.

Your critics are saying that for the one year you have spent in parliament you have been silent?

It depends on what they call silence. I have been representing the people of Kyadondo East and Uganda at large. I have been a member of the government assurances committee and attendance has been very good and we have gotten work done. I have been a member of the ICT and national guidance committee and we have done great work. I’m surprised that they are still saying this right now.

Everything they are trying is to justify why there should be a change in the representation of Kyadondo East after just nine months in parliament. So the term is five years which is the underlying thing; if you ask have I began the work; the answer is yes, have I represented the people, yes I have. They are trying for a reason to give the public why I shouldn’t be voted back to parliament, but they are finding a very hard time.

There are many opposition candidates in the race won’t this cost you?

The opposition has made it very clear; you have heard my party talk and other parties. You heard DP pullout their candidate for the opposition, but as individuals the constitution allows to contest independently so it goes down to personal and political ethics for them as individuals.

The onus is not on us as opposition to force them do what they do not what to do. If they were sympathetic to the opposition and believed in the same ideology and we are at the same front line why would they engage in a by-election because the government has fraudulently cancelled the results.

There is no doubt Kantinti won the 2016 elections, no doubt Kantinti is a flag bearer of FDC and it’s clear that the NRM government used the court mechanism to cancel people’s victory.

As we were launching my campaigns at Wampewo, Col. Besigye said it very clearly that he invited Bobi Wine and asked him to step aside and he didn’t do it.

Bobi wine says that you were using live debates to ride on his popularity, what’s your take?

I find that very childish for a person who wants to contest for an MP. If you have been invited for a debate on issues of Kyadondo East, and you have offered yourself as a candidate then how do you turn around and say that they are riding on your popularity?

I’m not the host that invited you, these media houses set up these debates and the reason why they invite us is that the people of Kyadondo East should get a very clear understanding of who is going to represent them.

On debates we talk about the issues, and they find out if we understand them, so it’s wrong for him to say that I’m using these to ride on his popularity. He has failed to show up on four occasions, what is he hiding from? He is afraid of debating these issues and doesn’t understand them; he is failing to present how different he is going to represent the people of Kyadondo East and why he is the clear candidate.

If you lose the election, what will be you next course of action?

Definitely we are going to win, we are sure about this. The difference between all of us candidates, is that some of us have been in the race before and know the dynamics at the ground, we are very optimistic we are going to win and I don’t know what is going to change that.

As per now I have scheduled to meet ten people per polling station from all the 93 polling stations, whose responsibility is to protect the vote come 29. We are winning with much better numbers because last time there was little confusion about who was who but this time round the party has been very clear on who the flag bearer is. The party mechanism is behind me and the people on the ground know what the truth is, so treading in lies won’t help.

If you win, what should the people of Kyadondo expect?

Continuity, humbleness, proper representation; that can never be compromised. Once I am voted again it will mean that they have re-amplified their voice because the elections of 2016 were very clear about their choice.

This will be a very good precedent for Uganda at large because we cannot live in an era where elections are cancelled for no reason, it was not because of voter bribery, vote stuffing or candidate fault but the incompetence of the electoral commission.