Minister without Portfolio in charge of Political Mobilization Richard Todwong

Minister without Portfolio in charge of Political Mobilization Richard Todwong

The Minister without Portfolio Richard Todwong takes over as acting NRM SecretaryGeneral following a resolution by the NRM Caucus that Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi resigns from his post as NRM Secretary General.

The Caucus accused Mbabazi of misusing NRM Party Structures and involving himself in pre-mobilization activities for purposes of ascending to the highest political office come 2016.

This followed the presentation of an intelligence report and recordings of Jackline Mbabazi, the Premiers wife allegedly maligning President Yoweri Museveni and pushing for Mbabazi’s Presidential ambitions.

Makindye East MP John Ssimbwa and also NRM Whip Kampala reveals that the session at State House in Entebbe evoked divergent ideas about Amama Mbabazi prompting members to suggest that he relinquishes the post of NRM Secretary General.  He noted that the Caucus resolved that whoever is elected Secretary General should not have a busy office within government.

Ssimbwa added that since the NRM Caucus has no mandate of either electing or appointing a Secretary General, the issue was left to the Central Executive Committee (CEC), National Executive Committee (NEC) and Delegates Committee.

Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi

Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi

However, a proposal was sent to NEC that Minister without Portfolio Richard Todwong assumes responsibility as acting Secretary General in the meantime.
The decision awaits the approval of NEC, CEC and Delegates Conference.

Ssimbwa also noted that the Caucus meeting resolved that Mbabazi’s wife Jacqueline Mbabazi together with Former Minister Hope Mwesigye appear before NRM’s Disciplinary Committee.

NRM Party Publicity secretary Evelyn Anite noted that senior members of the NRM were implicated in the report presented by President Museveni for causing confusion and demobilizing the party structures before campaign time and to mobilize NRM members to support Amama Mbabazi.

She noted that Hope Mwesigye, the NRM Chairperson for Kabale District, Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi’s wife Jacqueline Mbabazi and Leader of the Women’s league, some NRM administrative secretaries and Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi kept appearing in the President’s report.

Anite noted that as the Caucus, they realized that the matter was beyond them and opted to have it referred to the Central Executive Committee so that it calls an interface with the mentioned members.

She says that some of the activities they were involved in are criminal in nature and involved bribery.

She noted that also Caucus proposed a constitutional amendment to review the age and mandate of the secretary general.