National Unity Platform (NUP) president Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, has said he has no personal grudges against former Leader of the Opposition Mathias Mpuuga.
Speaking in a television interview on Monday, Bobi Wine said he instead holds Mpuuga in high regard but insisted that the latter must follow the moral values of NUP.
“I have no personal issues with my Deputy President, Hon. Mpuuga. I appointed him as my Deputy President, Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, and Parliamentary Commissioner. He is a good leader whom I hold in high regard, we simply want him to do the moral thing,” Kyagulanyi said.
“I don’t want Hon. Mpuuga to think that he is helping us or himself, I believe he will look into himself and his conscience to do the right thing and to the public, I urge you not to be abusive to Hon. Mpuuga; be respectful and hold us accountable in a rightful way,” he added.
Bobi Wine was speaking publicly for the first time over the Shs500m service award Mpuuga allegedly received from Parliament in appreciation of his work as a Leader of the Opposition in Parliament. Mpuuga has since declined to resign and instead defended the service award while highlighting what he called governance issues in the party. On Saturday, he released a statement on social media, explaining the origin of their decision to make his resign.
But according to the NUP leader, they did not target Mpuuga alone as some people allege.
“We didn’t plan to frame the issue solely around Hon. Mpuuga apologizing for his involvement in the corruption scheme and misrepresenting our party’s values. He needed time to consult with his family and allies before any announcements. We wanted him to be the first to communicate, but in my personal conversation with him, he expressed hesitance to do so,” Kyagulanyi said.
“This is not about Kyagulanyi or Mpuuga; this is about standing on the truth. We have many politicians who are for sale. If money is what is going to divide the party leaders, then let it be. If standing on the moral side of history, so be it. We treasure the values that brought us together as a party,” he added.
“Accountability and transparency can be traced when the population is vigilant. It’s the people who hold us accountable, even our own. It’s because of the pressure from the people that those who seek justice must come with clean hands. I didn’t want this corruption issue to be traced to my doorstep, and we haven’t taken action about it,” he added.
“I don’t want Hon. Mppuga to think that he is helping us or himself, I believe he will look into himself and his conscience to do the right thing. and to the public, I urge you not to be abusive to Hon. Mpuuga; be respectful and hold us accountable in a rightful way.
Positions of power and authority are not a matter of life and death; this is what sets us apart from the Museveni regime. It shouldn’t be about power but about morality,” Kyagulanyi said.
As a NUP party, we stand for transparency, and we owe it to the population. I don’t want to do things just because an election is coming; we want to do the right thing with or without an election. – Hon. Kyagulanyi
We must be seen to represent the values we stand for as a NUP party. We didn’t take this case to the public domain; we found it there. We’ve had many private meetings, with our respective leaders. We made it abundantly clear in our 2021 manifesto to cut down on unreasonable expenditures, especially considering our struggling economy. Our priority shouldn’t be rewarding leaders; politics is the most constructive business. We should fight corruption not only in words but also in action. – Hon. Robert Kyagulanyiders, and this became disturbing when it was kept a secret. – Hon. Robert Kyagulanyi
