President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has suspended campaigns for both Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the 11th Parliament, TrumpetNews can exclusively report.
The President issued the directive on Monday at State House Entebbe while meeting Hon Rebecca Kadaga, her arch-rival Jacob Oulanyah and other contestants vying for Deputy Speaker who include Robina Gureme Rwakoojo, Thomas Tayebwa, Anita Among and others.
The meeting which began at 3pm ended late in the night with Museveni telling the candidates that their campaigns had sucked the party into the fights which have since painted a bad image of the ruling regime.
A source privy to the details of the stormy meeting revealed that Museveni told Kadaga and Oulanyah that their fights were stalling Parliamentary work.
“The President has since stopped the campaigns,” a source said.
A source further quotes Museveni as having said, “we have a lot to do as a party both in Parliament and in other government institutions for now the campaigns stop.”
Museveni said he will seek guidance from his lawyers on how campaigns should be managed by the NRM candidates without necessarily leaving the NRM party’s reputation in disrepute.
This website understands that Museveni allowed both Kadaga and Oulanyah time to present their case.
“The two made their usual claims. Oulanyah insisted that Kadaga was breaking an agreement she made in 2016. On the other hand Kadaga accused Oulanyah of making false allegations without evidence,” a source added.
Museveni also said that the early campaigns are unnecessary because by the virtue of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker’s election happens in one day where candidates are nominated, campaign and voted in Parliament. Therefore campaigning outside the constituency (Parliament) is only hurting the NRM.
The President also said that NRM retreat will be attended by only incoming NRM MPs because the outgoing ones have a lot of work to finish in Parliament.
The meeting ended at 9pm.
While Mr Oulanyah had been careful with his words saying he was awaiting the Central Executive Committee’s (CEC) decision on who is endorsed as Speaker, his opponent had waged a full scale media war by claiming that there is a plot to appoint her as Vice President (VP), a position she is disinterested in.