Former Prime Minister and Presidential aspirant John Patrick Amama Mbabazi has urged Ugandans to demand and cause change in the political leadership of the country.
Speaking during the installation of Rev Onesmus Asiimwe as new chaplain for St Francis Chapel in Makerere University yesterday, Mbabazi said that if the people of Zimbabwe, South Africa and Ethiopia did it, Ugandans can do the same.
“We have witnessed change in Zimbabwe, South Africa and we shall witness change in Uganda soon,” Mbabazi said.
The former premier also appealed to religious leaders to push the agenda in places of worship despite government's intention to gag them.
“It is wrong to say that religious leaders can not be political, because religion is life of people and politics is part of it, so they are talking about the life of people,” Mbabazi said.
However, the National Resistance Movement (NRM) party spokesperson Rogers Mulindwa rubbished Mbabazi’s pleas as insignificant. He also labeled Mbabazi as an indiscipline cadre with no moral authority to make such statements.
“We respect Mababazi as a senior cadre, but he could face disciplinary action for contesting as an individual. Meanwhile the same people he is mobilising are the same that voted Museveni to power, so his call does not mean anything,” Mulindwa said.
Mbabazi was once Museveni’s right hand man who was referred to as the super minister. It is alleged that he had power to chair cabinet ahead of any body else, and had access to Presidential privileges. However, towards the 2016 elections, he fell out with President Museveni leading to his sacking.
Mababazi would later declare intentions to run against Museveni in the 2016 elections, however, his run recorded 1% of the vote.
The Archbishop of the Church of Uganda upon installing the new chaplain called upon parliament to reign in on the situation of unemployment in the country. He lamented the untold suffering youth are undergoing in search of employment.
“Men and women are tired, the youth are tired because they graduate from university but have no jobs, many of them are taken captive, exported out through human trafficking companies. We need to be concerned as parents and leaders because we are not safe, our youth are not safe and I wonder why parliament is not doing anything,” Ntagali said.
