Former FDC Party President General Mugisha Muntu has finally made official his decision to quit Forum for Democratic Change (FDC).
The retired army general made public his decision to quit FDC after countrywide consultations. Muntu lost the FDC party presidency to Patrick Amuriat in a tight contest that divided party members with some like Kizza Besigye favoring Amuriat.
Muntu has now unveiled his New Formation, a sketch-up of strategy that will see him decide on which political direction to take, and formation of a new political vehicle to drive the strategy.
Muntu also listed values that the new formation will start off with. Sections of opposition figures were waiting with belated breath to see which direction Muntu would take.
Accompanied by other opposition and FDC party stalwarts including Paul Mwiru, Angelina Osege, Elijah Okupa, newly elected Kasiano Wadri, Muntu said they would be consulting with Ugandans on a new direction that he believes will bring change and transformation in the opposition political ground.
Below, we reproduce General Mugisha Muntu’s statement on the New Formation.
While the new formation is going to consult widely and discuss deeply with Ugandans regarding our policy positions on various issues, there are a set of core values, beliefs and principles that we already share on certain topics.
Democracy and Good Governance
We believe that every Ugandan has an equal and legitimate voice and that those who lead the country must derive their authority from the people through regular, free and fair elections. We also believe that those that get elected by the majority of Ugandans are obliged to ensure that the rights, freedoms and liberties of those in the minority are as protected as those in the majority.
Gender Equity
We affirm that for far too long, women both in our country and globally have been treated as second-class citizens with no agency of their own. We believe that to transform Uganda, women’s voices need not only to be heard, but included in the mainstream of every sector of the country. This belief will be reflected in our new formation’s representation, polices and outlook. Justice, Law and Order.We affirm that our country’s history has been tumultuous and bloody largely because the people have from time to time felt that they are unable to access the justice they deserve, that the law is skewed in favor of the rich and powerful and that the state’s idea of orderliness is only those things that favour those in power. We therefore aspire to build a country in which justice is accessible to all by means of institutionalised courts of law, well laid out and respected laws, non-partisan police and other such organs rather than through patronage politics.
We acknowledge that over the past three decades, Uganda has made considerable gains in terms of national security for citizens and existing institutions. However, the current political climate has given rise to a situation in which the state prioritizes regime survival above everything else. As a result, the security gains made under the current government are increasingly being undermined by the use of the armed forces for the protection of and furtherance of the regime rather than the protection of the people. Therefore, we are committed to mobilizing the people and patriotic members of the ruling party as well as those in the armed forces to not only refrain from denying Ugandans their civil liberties, but also advancing the cause of ensuring we have a peaceful transition from the current government and de-escalation of tensions between the people and the state.
Transparency, Ethics and Discipline
We believe that those elected or appointed into positions of public leadership have a duty to the people to lead in a manner that is transparent, ethical and disciplined. We therefore commit, right from the start, to ensure that our actions both within the party and out, are transparent, follow an agreed code of ethical conduct and are above reproach. We will adopt a zero tolerance attitude towards corruption and require all our leaders to regularly undergo a lifestyle audit.
National Cohesion
We believe that any political group with intentions of leading this country must recognise and be sensitive to our fractured history as a nation and the need for national unity. Cognisant of this, our new formation will aim at tapping into our cultural diversity and shared ambitions to define, develop and celebrate a sense of national cohesion.
This will be done by a firm commitment to ensuring that our national resources are used to equitably and that our regional or ethnic differences, while acknowledged and respected, are subjected to the celebration of our oneness as a country.
We will be developing policy positions on these values and more over the coming weeks through a consultative and participatory process with all Ugandans interested in joining us
