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The next rally was at Freedom
Square, Kagadi where Kizza Besigye arrived at 4:30 to a red carpet welcome and was
given a key. The same DISO Lt. Tibulya had sealed off Freedom Square on
Friday to keep people away from attending the rally. There were about
1000 people and Kizza Besigye promised to explain FDC’s program on Radio
Kagadi, which he did in the evening. The final rally of the day was a
brief one at Mpeefu, Kibaale. Trucks of soldiers had been offloaded two
days prior to the rally. When local journalists asked to interview DISO
about the deployment he threatened them and told them not to report the
story.
Today, Monday February 6,
2006 Kizza Besigye addressed rallies at Katooke, Kyeguga, Kyenjojo and a
grand rally of about 15,000 people at Fort Portal Boma Grounds. It took
the entourage 45 minutes to drive through Fort Portal town to the grounds
due to the large crowd. At Kyenjojo our scout counted fifteen people
attending NRM-O celebrations of Tarehe Sita. Women who were mobilized to
wear sanjja in Fort Portal town were overwhelmed into silence by the
number of Kizza Besigye’s supporters.
In his remarks, Kizza Besigye
remarked that Bunyoro is the only region without a university, without a
tarmac road and the only hospital in the region Hoima hospital was
constructed in 1910 and currently had no drugs to treat common ailments.
He said after Museveni realized that the people of Bunyoro are no longer
chanting ‘Abeewo,’ he has resorted to trying to stop KB from
talking to them so that he does not open their eyes further to see how
they have been short changed by the NRM leadership. KB said that jailing
him will not solve the problems of Uganda but will instead increase them.
He said Museveni’s problem is that he does not know why people changed
from clapping and praising him to ‘Agende’. People support
programs not how the leaders look. He said luckily NRM government is in
its dying moments and Museveni would soon leave power. Bunyoro and Toro
are priority number two after the northern region for FDC because these
regions need to be pulled to the same level with other regions of the
country. He asked people to keep their eyes on the issues he is raising
and said after two years if nothing has been done then they should warn
him and still if nothing is done they should fire him after five years
instead of waiting for twenty years. He repeated that the reason that
Museveni continues to ignore the problems of these regions is because of
their continued praises for him. “The more you chant the more he ignores
you. The small district of Rukungiri has 15 RDCs and 4 ministers because
the people of Rukungiri rejected Museveni and his lies.”
Kizza Besigye revealed that
while Bunyoro has oil reserves, Museveni’s government has an evil plan to
build a pipeline and take this oil from Bunyoro to have it refined in
Mbarara District. He said tobacco growers in Bunyoro have not benefited
from growing tobacco because BAT has a monopoly and decides when and at
what price to buy their produce with no direction from government adding
that this would stop immediately after FDC comes to power in May this
year.
In Fort Portal KB received a
red carpet welcome and an old man gave him a spear, bark cloth, and Kanzuu.
He thanked the people of Toro for the warm welcome they gave him in
November and today and for their prayers while he was in jail. Besigye
said, “The strength I left jail with is ten times greater than the
strength and courage I went in jail with. Fortunately the whole country
is united that Museveni must go. He is a wrestler who ties his opponent
before a match. Museveni has already lost hope of winning an election and
he is only using intimidation to stop his opponents.” He said the
country was divided into two parts. One part is the Uganda of poverty, no
roads, no hospitals, no infrastructure and that is where Bunyoro and Toro
belong and then the other Uganda number 2, of a few well-off individuals
who get scholarships to study abroad, get jobs in Uganda Revenue Authority
and Civil Aviation Authority. Kizza Besigye said Uganda Debt Network has
revealed that 400 billion Uganda shillings is lost to corruption in Uganda
each year and this money goes to the few people living in Uganda number
2. He said it was unfortunate that some people in Bunyoro and Toro are
still chanting ‘No Change’ when they are in poverty. KB explained that
the president is supposed to be the people’s servant and not their king
and when they employ him and he gives nothing in return they must fire
him.
Later in the evening before
being hosted on Voice of Toro Kizza Besigye gave a brief press conference
to refute rumors about his qualifications and that he had withdrawn from
the race for the presidency. He said the rumor about changing his names
is absolute nonsense and that State House had deployed people in Rukungiri
to find any person with the name Warren to use in their nonsensical
scheme. The Red Pepper today published a photograph of an old man who
they claim is Warren Besigye. KB said many of the people approached in Rukungiri to play this role had refused to be used until they found the
old man whom he has never seen or known but he said he would leave it to
the Electoral Commission to investigate. KB further said that he had
received about 100 telephone calls from people asking if he had pulled out
of the race and he put this down to psychological warfare to create
uncertainty in the electorate. He cautioned people not to panic and to
expect more rumors saying this is a repugnant abuse of power and shows how
desperate Museveni is. Journalists asked if he had ever changed names and
he responded that he had only discarded use of the name Smith but he has
never adopted any new name since childhood.
Kizza Besigye’s entourage in
Bunyoro included Patrick Baguma FDC Candidate for Burahya and Toterebuka
Bamwenda FDC Candidate for Kibaale. He was also accompanied by Atugoonza
Francis the FDC candidate for Hoima mayorship, John Nsubuga FDC, Denmark
and Dr. Stella Nguza FDC’s Candidate for Hoima Women Parliamentary Seat. In Toro Kizza Besigye was joined by John Butiime FDC Candidate for Fort
Portal, Bishop Eustus Kamanyire, and LCIII Chairman Richard Mwebaasa.
Ends.
FDC Reporter
FDCNEWS |
Kizza Besigye started his
campaigns on Sunday February 5, 2006 at 7:30 a.m. with a two hour
church service at Bujjumbura Church Hoima Catholic Diocese which was
filled to capacity. When he was given an opportunity to speak to the
congregation, KB humbly thanked them for their prayers while in jail and
asked them to continue praying for peace. The campaign team then headed
to Bugembe Tea Estate Hoima District at 10:30 where KB addressed about 500
tea estate workers. He returned to Hoima Town for a rally at 11:30 a.m,
three and a half hours ahead of the scheduled time causing a mix up for
supporters. After Hoima Town the candidate and his team proceeded to
Bugangaizi Kakomero, Hoima Distriict arriving at 2:00 p.m. to a welcome
by, boda, boda cyclists and people chanting ‘Besigye!’ He was given
a big symbolic key for State House. The group arrived at Karuguza,
Kibaale District at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday where about 800 people had
gathered to be addressed by KB. The DISO Lt. Tibulya was found
intimidating people and scaring them away from the rally.
Journalists from the Monitor photographed him and asked him what
he was doing but he entered his car and drove off.
