When Bedridden Ssegirinya Rejected NUP Order To Sign Commissioners’ Censure Motion
In a disheartening turn of events, the National Unity Platform (NUP) ideologies led by the party’s Secretary General, Lewis Rubongoya, got a shocker after ailing Kawempe North MP Muhammad Ssegirinya rejected signing a censure motion against the four parliamentary commissioners from his sickbed at Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi.
For about a month, Lwemiyaga MP Theodore Ssekikubo has been in a drive to blackmail MPs into singing a motion to censure Esther Afoyochan (Zombo), Prossy Akampurira Mbabazi (Rubanda), Solomon Silwanyi (Bukooli Central), and Mathias Mpuuga (Nyendo-Mukungwe) for alleged illegal service award of Shs1.7bn they earned.
However, Ssekikubo’s drive seems to have turned rock-strewn as the majority of MPs shunned signing it with differing reasons, with others arguing that “the service award for which censure movers seek to use as a basis to impeach commissioners, was legally processed by the only mandated parliamentary commission to pay MPs all their benefits.”
MPs’ refusal to sign the censure triggered desperacy among its sponsors and stakeholders to the extent that NUP made a standing order for all its 58 MPs to sign it to get rid of Mpuuga to pave their way to make their rejected Francis Zaake the Commissioner of Parliament.
This is how NUP resolved to reach out to Ssegirinya who spent six months at Nairobi hospital battling for his life through their emissary, only identified as Eyekolera, a renowned NUP blogger, outside Uganda.
To shock bedridden Ssegirinya and his caretakers, one day, Eyekolera approached Bosco Kassaga, a brother to Sseggirinya who stood with him all the way, to ask him to organize Ssegirinya for them to take papers for him to sign a censure motion, leaving him in utter disbelief.
“Eyekolera came where we were and told Kasagga to organize for them our brother because they wanted him to sign a censure motion against the parliamentary commissioners,” a source who spoke on condition of anonymity, said during an interview for this story.
No way!
The source said that indeed, NUP team followed its words with action, only to be shocked after Ssegirinya flatly rejected their request.
“When the NUP team brought censure papers to our brother for signing, he told them he could not sign the motion to censure Mpuuga,” our source said.
According to the source, Ssegirinya explained to the NUP team that he was still alive because of Mpuuga’s compassionate steps that enabled him to travel to Nairobi for better medical attention when NUP had left him for death.
“This gentleman [Mpuuga] wholeheartedly helped expedite my medical clearance so I could access further treatment. I cannot sign that petition against someone who was so good to me when others shunned me in my time of need. I am sorry, but I will not backstab him.” Teary Ssegirinya is reported to have shot back at overzealous Eyekolera and colleagues in his company.
Ssegirinya, added, “you (NUP) men wanted to go to Kadugala [his ancestral home] to bury me amid praising me as your right-hand man to the extent that you had started pronouncing me dead!”
Ssegirinya’s heartfelt words and refusal to betray his benefactor touched everyone, emphasizing his desire to use his “remaining time to reconcile with others and showing gratitude to those who have supported him during his illness.”
Processing Ssegirinya’s medical tourism clearance from authorities was one of Mpuuga’s last accomplishments as LoP in December 2023.
In late 2023, when Ssegirinya went to the Netherlands for medical attention, he got vilified by Alex Waiswa Mufumbiro, deputy NUP spokesperson who accused the former of “faking illness and using the situation to put NUP in disrepute.”
It is also widely known that NUP ideologies including party president Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, Lewis Rubongoya, the Secretary-General, and Joel Ssenyonyi, the party’s spokesperson and the Leader of opposition in parliament (LoP), frequently, visited Ssegirinya in Nairobi, during his sick stay.
“What made us angry is the fact that the first thing they always asked us was whether Ssegirinya could be fit enough to pose for photos with them!” a source revealed.
On the contrary, the source revealed that during their six-month stay at Agha Khan, Mpuuga visited them four times and never took any pictures for posting.
The incident at Aga Khan Hospital has sparked controversy and raised questions about the intentions of the NUP leadership considering, the censure motion is spearheaded by NRM’s Ssekikubo.
The collaboration between the opposition NUP and the ruling NRM to target Mpuuga, a senior NUP member, has fueled speculation about the motives behind the move. To onlookers, the obvious connivance raises concerns about the true intentions of NUP and its leaders, suggesting an internal rift within the party and an alliance with their political adversaries to dent Mpuuga.
As the controversy unfolds, many are left questioning the ethics and priorities of the NUP leadership, particularly in light of Ssegirinya’s stand against “betrayal and his focus on reconciliation and gratitude in his time of need.”
This unfolding drama is more than just a political maneuver and reveals the complexities and ethical dilemmas within Uganda’s political landscape.
Onlookers say, “Ssegirinya’s courageous stand in his most vulnerable moment has cast a spotlight on the values of loyalty and integrity, challenging the political machinations of those in power.”
As the dust settles, the poignant scene at Aga Khan Hospital serves as a stark reminder of the human element in politics, where moral choices can profoundly impact the narrative of power dynamics and syndicating.