Norbert Mao: God will give Bobi Wine’s NUP bigger punishments in coming months

Democratic Party president general Norbert Mao says God will give Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine’s National Unity Platform (NUP) tougher punishments in coming months.

Speaking from the party’s headquarters in Kampala on September 22, Mao said God had heard the cries of DP members and leaders and had started punishing those who were fishing its members.

 “There are institutions that have been fighting DP but I think God is now coming up to punish those who have been fighting DP, because for us we don’t have the power to punish anybody. Our only job is to cry out to God,” said Mao.

“In the next few months you are going to see punishments all around. I am not a prophet but you are going to see punishment. I want to assert that nobody cries to God in vain.”

In mid-August 2020, a section of DP members from Buganda sub-region left the Mao-led party and joined Bobi Wine’s NUP.

But the party has in recent weeks faced challenges regarding its acquisition from Moses Nkonge Kibalama and his colleagues, as well as controversies surrounding local council and parliamentary nominations.

For the NUP acquisition saga, Kibalama claims Bobi Wine failed to pay him Shs18bn for ceding the party’s leadership to him.

As for the nomination controversy, singer Joseph Mayanja aka Jose Chameleone is already the poster child.

At the weekend, NUP’s Elections Management Committee chose Kawempe North MP Latif Ssebagala as Kampala lord mayoral race flag bearer.

But Chameleone rejected the Mercy Walukamba Committee’s decision, saying Ssebagala had pulled out of the race on September 18, leaving him unopposed.

“Please recall that by close of September 18th, your record indicates that I was unopposed by the fact that my fellow competitor All-Hajj Latif Ssebagala had withdrawn his candidature in a letter already in your possession and in the public domain,” Chameleone wrote to Walukamba on September 20.

“By the foregoing, I am the unopposed NUP candidate for the position of Lord Mayor Kampala city.”

However, in a twist of events, Ssebagala announced, on September 22, that he had quit the mayoral race.

MAO TO DP MEMBERS WHO DEFECTED TO NUP

Mao further called on those who had defected to scandal-ridden NUP to return home.

“Some people ran away from DP to other places but they found out that they were running away from a leaking house to a house which is burning; now I rather be wet than to be burnt,” noted Mao.

“If I have a choice between being wet and being burnt, I’d rather be wet because wetness has never killed anyone. So, I repeat our call: please come back to our leaking house so that we mend it, come with some grass, run away, we are waiting for you.”

But he maintained the party would not tolerate indiscipline.

“I have warned DP members, if you are member, you should not be seen gallivanting with candidates who are non DP candidate against a DP candidate. Automatically your matter will be a disciplinary issue and we will give you a red carpet to wherever you want to go and escort you,” he cautioned.

“So, there will be no compromise on discipline. In general terms, the Gulu Delegates Conference has drawn a line which if you cross you will get in trouble; an organization must have a line.”

To those who want to belong to DP and other parties, Mao reminded them: If you want to be a Catholic Priest, you must know that you must be celibate. If you find celibacy is an inconvenience you leave the church.”

“You don’t say I want to be a catholic priest but I also want to have a wife. The two cannot coexist. You can’t be in DP and you are seen promoting other candidates.”

WAR TEAM

Mao described the team elected in the Gulu Delegates Conference as a war team, bragging that the party has now “got a government in waiting,” and a leadership so finely “distilled” and “devoid of impurities.”

He described the National Executive Committee (NEC) as “balanced in every sense of the words,” including in terms of skillset, and gender rule.  

“This marks the end of wrangles. The president no longer has to label anyone. These people love the party and have been part of the fight,” he said.

It is this team that Mao hopes will complete the five storied Ben Kiwanuka House by, among others, raising funds to ensure that the structure is up by the end of the 2020-25 term of office.

Mao also expects the team to have more delegates conferences since the number of delegates has been cut by almost a half – from about 2,000 to 1,000.

The newly elected leaders will also work on modalities for the application for DP’s membership to the International Democrats Union.

The DP leader will also focus on filling gaps defectors left in branch leadership across the country, as well as ensuring branch inspection and accountability.