All the political parties represented in Parliament are having a meeting at the Commonwealth Resort, Munyonyo to deliberate on the upcoming national dialogue but the Forum For Democractic Change (FDC) is yet to register appearance.
The parties under their uniting umbrella, the Inter-Party Organisations for Dialogue (IPOD) says that the FDC was invited and a chair for the party president is ably represented on the high table but Patrick Amuriat and team seem to have decided to sit the morning dialogue out.
When contacted for a comment, deputy party chairman, Proscovia Salamu Musumba who is also a resident member of the IPOD said the Najjanankumbi-based party had nothing to say at the summit especially with a president who does not want to listen.
“We wanted to dialogue with a fellow party chairman of a sister party but instead, we got the President of Uganda. If we are not at the same level, how can we have a serious conversation about the state of and democracy in our country?”
Musumba rubbished claims by some sections of the public that the FDC has only adopted a defiance position on almost everything and are allergic to dialogue saying that such comments are unfounded on logic and unrealistic in every sense.
“Some people speak as if they live in Dubai. Anyone who lives in Uganda knows that there’s no democracy. We have the most number of MPs in parliament among the opposition but we can’t campaign anywhere in Western Uganda, no electoral reforms and the institutions of the state are used against us. What is there to talk about?”
This year’s IPOD summit is organised under the theme “Strengthening political parties, enacting constitutional and electoral reforms, promoting inclusiveness in national politics, strengthening democratic governance and the rule of law.”