Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) founding member and former army commander, Gen. Mugisha Muntu on Tuesday left the party after 13 years.
In a detailed statement, Muntu blamed his exit on the party’s defiance strategy and the narrowing space within the party for those who hold divergent views.
His critics, however, accuse the former president of being a ‘sore loser’ who since November 2017 when he lost the presidency to Patrick Amuriat Oboi at Namboole stadium.
Opposition Chief Whip, Ibrahim Semujju Nganda who doubles as the FDC spokesperson told Matooke Republic that some senior FDC members had “bad blood” for Muntu since the start.
According to Nganda, this is why most of them never supported his bid when he ran against D.r Kizza Besigye twice and last year against Amuriat.
“The first time he offered himself to contest against Dr. Kizza Besigye, some members doubted his judgement. I remember my sister Salaamu Musumba telling me “I don’t know what is wrong with these Banyankore,” Semujju said.
Besigye being the most charismatic and selfless leader of FDC, many members from the top executive committee members to national delegates did not phantom an idea of anyone running against him but Muntu dared – and lost.
As Hon. Abdu Katuntu notes, “Contesting against him [Besigye] is almost criminal, punishable by isolation and other social boycotts.”
An NRM mole?
Although Muntu argued that his contest against Besigye was to test the party’s democratic structures, members took it otherwise and branded Muntu a mole planted into the party by President Museveni and the National Resistance Movement (NRM) to disrupt their activities.
This opinion came out when more strongly on Tuesday when Muntu announced his exit from the party. Several Besigye-inclined supported went into overdrive saying the party will now be more formidable without Muntu.
However, as the criticism increased against Muntu, the harder he worked and eventually took over the office from Besigye in 2012 after beating Budadiri East MP, Nathan Nandala Mafabi.
Immediately, he embarked on activities of building party structures from the grassroots up. However, this did not yield results as FDC’s seats in Parliament in the 2016 general election reduced from 38 to 27 – even less than the number of independent MPs in the House.
This backslide was blamed on Muntu’s lack of aggression and his backroom leadership philosophy that allows structures to function with little individual influence and as thus, he was denied a second term at the party’s helm.
Legacy
Muntu’s work with FDC started out when the party was born in 2005. He was immediately appointed as the secretary for mobilisation and is credited for opening up the party’s regional offices.
The creation of regional offices and nationwide committees gave FDC quick diffusion effect and in the 2006 general election, the party gave NRM a run for their money giving Kizza Besigye 37% of the vote up from 27% he had attained under Reform Agenda in 2001.
Despite his opponents portraying him as an armchair leader whose leadership style is best suited for developed democracies where politics is played by the rules, Muntu’s impeccable record precedes him.
At just 23 years, Muntu descended into the jungles of Luweero to fight the Obote II regime despite his father, Enoch Muntuyera having been a senior Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) member.
In 2015, Muntu gave FDC a new policy agenda at the time when critiques accused the party of having alternative policies except seeing Museveni out of power and also made a passionate case for politics of non-violence rather than defiance.
As FDC historicals such as Betty Kamya, Amanya Mushega, Prof. George Kanyeihamba, and Maj. John Kazoora continued to take the back seat citing Besigye’s individual growth at the expense of the party, Muntu tried to keep the party together despite constant provocation.
Muntu’s biggest failure, however, is not holding the party together. In his tenure, Betty Kamya eventually left to form the Uganda Federal Alliance, Maj Rubaramira Ruranga crossed back to the NRM party, Beatrice Anywar followed suit and eventually, Muntu ejected himself.
It is thought that Muntu left FDC with about 22 other members to form their own party. As to whether this will weaken FDC or not waits to be seen.