By Andrew Irumba
Kyadondo East constituency became a battle ground on Monday, as the police ran battles with supporters of area legislator Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine, who was slated to hold his first consultation meeting in preparation for the 2021 presidential elections.
Bobi Wine was scheduled to hold his first consultation meeting at Our Lady of Good Counsel Gayaza playground.
However, when he reached the venue, police blocked him from addressing the gathering of hundreds of People Power supporters who were waiting for him.
The police argued that Bobi Wine couldn’t hold a consultation meeting in an open ground, because such an activity is supposed to be held in an enclosed facility.
When the police blocked Bobi Wine from accessing the venue and roughly arrested him, his supporters started hurling insults and stones at the cops, which prompted them to shoot rubber bullets and teargas to disperse the crowd.
During the scuffle several People Power supporters and politicians were arrested and they are currently being detained at various police stations around Metropolitan Kampala, while others are caged at Kasangati police station.
It should be noted that early this month Bobi Wine wrote to the Inspector General of Police, Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Kadaga and the Electoral Commission, notifying them of his intentions to start holding nation wide consultation meetings with his voters ahead of the 2021 general election, which he hopes to use to oust President Yoweri Museveni by use of the ballot paper.
However, although Bobi Wine released a week-Long programme during which he plans to hold consultation meetings in different parts of the country, he is already meeting stiff resistance and on Sunday the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) William Komakech blocked Bobi Wine’s consultation meeting which had been organised Jalfo Gardens for next week.
Solomon Onono, the manager Jaflo Gardens hotel confirmed that they turned down the booking for fear that their business may be affected by the activities of the People Power movement.
But Komakech denied ordering management of the hotel not to host the meeting. He said, in any case, People Power only approached the hotel and failed to notify the security teams in the district as one of the prerequisites enshrined in the Public Order Management Act (POMA). As such he said, the planned meeting is unlawful.
Bobi Wine is yet to issue statement about the Kitgum saga and where he has since relocated the consultation meeting.Bobi Wine’s notification to the IGP Okoth Ochola and Speaker Kadaga about his consultation meetings reads thus;NOTIFICATION OF PUBLIC MEETINGS TO CONDUCT CONSULTATIONS UNDER SECTION 3 OF THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS ACT, 2005
Please refer to my letter (REF: MP/KE/122/19 to the Chairperson Electoral Commission on the captioned subject matter dated 3rd December 2019.
You will notice from the attached documents that we accordingly complied with Section 3 (3) of the Presidential Elections Act, 2005, and wrote to the relevant authorities including the District Police Commanders of the first seven districts where we intend to carry out the initial consultative meetings ( we also complied with the Provisions of the Public Order Management Act, 2013.
You will note that the DPCs of the underlisted subjects acknowledged deceit of the letters except the DPCs of Kasangati Town Council and Lira District, who received but declined to acknowledge receipt of the letters. The DPC Gulu district acknowledged receipt but noted that the letter should be addressed to the the IGP.
The purpose of this letter is to notify you of the above development and request you to direct the relevant police commanders and their subordinates to comply with the law in this regard.
The letter lays out the tentative programme as follows;
Monday 6th January, 2020- Kyadondo East Constituency at Our Lady of Good Counsel Gayaza
Tuesday 7th January, 2020-Gulu district at Da Covenant Hotel Grounds
Wednesday 8th January, 2020- Lira District at Grand Pacific Hotel
Thursday 9th January, 2020- Adjumani district at Lavic Country Resort
Friday 10th January, 2020-Yumbe District at Prafrord New Vocational Institute
Saturday 11th January, 2020- Arua District at Heritage Courts Hotel
Sunday 12th January, 2020-Zombo district, at Creamland Motel.
