Amuriat Says Muntu Meeting ‘Had no Disagreement’, FDC to Scrutinize His Findings

The FDC President, Patrick Amuriat Oboi has said that the leadership of the political party will scrutinize the findings tendered in by his predecessor, Mugisha Muntu entailing issues that came up during his nationwide consultations.

On Tuesday, Muntu together with his delegation met with Amuriat and other FDC leaders including Joyce Naboosa Ssebugwawo, Mubarak Munyagwa, Caleb Muwanguzi, Wycliffe Bakandonda and Kennedy Okello at Fairway Hotel in Kampala.

Former FDC Secretary, Alice Alaso, Arua municipality MP, Kassiano Wadri, Stephen Ochola and Owek. Sewava Sserubiri were part of the team that accompanied Muntu.

Muntu handed what he says were findings from his eight-month long consultations held in different parts of the country. The consultations which began in January of this year, after he lost the Presidential bid to Amuriat sought to pick the thoughts of FDC members on the goings on in the party.

In January, Muntu had said the process was what would form his decision on whether or not to remain in the party.

“Upon request by Former FDC President Maj. Gen. (rtd) Mugisha Muntu, we held a meeting with my predecessor today, 25th Sept 2018 at Fairway Hotel, Kampala,” Amuriat said in a statement after Tuesday’s meeting adding that “….his team presented to us findings of their eight months nationwide consultations announced immediately after my victory as FDC President on 24th November 2017”.

According to the FDC President, Muntu “stated that they were not opposed to my leadership of FDC” and “that the election that brought me into office was free and fair”.

He added that Muntu acknowledged that FDC fidelity to the values, principles, objectives/mission and strategies for which it was founded are not contested.

“At the time of conclusion of our meeting, our colleagues and my team had not had a point of casual or fundamental disagreement. We agreed that FDC institutions will scrutinise their findings and formally report back to Gen. Mugisha Muntu,” Amuriat said.

However, the meeting ended prematurely after some individuals from the FDC stormed the meeting room at the hotel and forced Amuriat to get out of the meeting. They insisted he was supposed to be in Najjanankubi at the party headquarters and not in a meeting that was taking forever to end.

At the same time, while Tuesday’s meeting was ongoing, a statement authored by Muntu in which he revealed that he was leaving FDC, a party he has been part of for the last 13 years, was ‘leaked’ to the press.

Muntu later told the press that the statement had been prematurely made public, before the meeting with Amuriat was concluded. Later in the day, he confirmed that he and some other people that he did not disclose had quit FDC.

“We have communicated to the FDC leadership our decision to leave the party as the best way forward for us all,” Muntu’s statement later on Tuesday read in part.

He said he would address a press conference on Thursday this week during which he is expected to further explain his decision.