Age limit; Maj gen Kyaligonza attacks M7, MPs and speaker
Maj Gen Matayo Kyaligonza, has joined Ugandans asking Museveni and NRM to take heed of public opposition to his life presidency project.
While speaking on CBS radio’s prime news skit, Nze nga bwendaba (In my opinion), Monday morning hosted by Alex Nsubuga Kyaligonza likened the bill to former president Apollo Milton Obote’s 1967 pigeonhole constitution.
“The president should listen to what people are saying. He should stop pretending to be very busy. He should use this chance [to retire] now when we still love him, not to give a chance to everyone to say he is tired,” Kyaligonza said.
Kyaligonza was a senior commander in the bush war, NRM vice chairman western Uganda, a CA delegate, member of the army’s historical high command, and presently Uganda’s ambassador to Burundi,
Kyaligonza warned that the controversial proposal to remove Article 102(b) that sets the 35 to 75-year presidential age cap, is taking the country down a dangerous road which spells doom.
Speaking about the September 27 chaos in which opposition MPs were beaten and violently dragged out of parliament by troops from the Special Forces Command, which protects the president, the former delegate to the Constituent Assembly, said limitation clauses were deliberately written into the 1995 Constitution.
He said during the CA, they spent about four days debating the age limit proposal with amendment after amendment, especially from the government side headed by the late Colonel Sserwanga Lwanga.
“The bad thing is, it has come at a time when Museveni is also 75 years old; we have now over-personalized this debate,” Kyaligonza said.
He said they placed limiting clauses in the Constitution because of Uganda’s history with dictators who planned on clinging on as presidents for life.
“We said instead of just pushing them out by force, let’s put in place mechanisms where it’s nature that will stop somebody from standing again. But now some people think what we did was for nothing,” he said.
The former MP in the 6th parliament said it is wrong to legislate for one person however good they might be, because bad people might use the same window.
“Even these MPs are wrong; why should you insist on bringing a proposal that results into beatings, fighting and arresting people? Why are you forcing it on people? Why don’t you withdraw it and first get consensus?” he questioned
He likened Raphael Magyezi’s private member’s bill to former president Apollo Milton Obote’s 1967 pigeonhole constitution that is said to have been single-handedly drafted by then attorney general, Godfrey Lukongwa Binaisa, and forced on parliament.
“Magyezi has no magezi [intellect]; why do you do things just to be seen? If you bring a proposal and it’s rejected, why don’t you withdraw it?” Kyaligonza questioned
“If I was Magyezi, I would have used common sense to see that the issue I’m bringing is unpopular; you can’t sell it to your constituents.”
Kyaligonza criticised Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga’s handling of the September 27 session that ended in violence and ejection of opposition MPs. He said Kadaga should have adjourned business to let MPs who were continuously singing the national anthem to cool off.
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