Since Bobi Wine sacked Nyendo Mukungwe MP Mathias Mpuuga from the powerful office of the Leader of Opposition, there has not been peace in the leading opposition party, the National Unity Platform.
The NUP supremo sent Mpuuga packing and replaced him with his protege Joel Ssenyonyi, the Nakawa west Parliamentary representative.
It is not clear why bad blood immediately brewed in the party but the new LoP wanted to be his own man and seemed to want to pour cold water on the burning coal lit by his predecessor. Days later, reports emerged on social media accusing Mpuuga of pocketing ugx500 million alongside fellow commissioners of parliament from the ruling party.
Bobi Wine himself sucked himself into the flying pan by informing the country that he had demanded the resignation from Mr Mpuuga after accusations of corruption. A meeting Bobi Wine called of selected people in his party had condemned Mpuuga and sentenced him.
He was told to return the money, resign from his new role as commissioner of parliament and apologize to the public.
This battle is what has been the political news in Uganda until allegations of LoP Ssenyonyi pocketing a whooping ugx1.7 billion to allegedly kill an investigations into improprieties at Civil Aviation Authority came up. That CAA has not come out to confirm or deny the accusations but, Ssenyonyi found himself on the defensive, and he has since gone to court after slapping charges of defamation against a journalist who has made famous these allegations, Dean Lubowa Saava.
Saava is however adamant, claiming that he has evidence, and he’s ready to adduce it before a judge. The battle lines have been drawn between Saava and Ssenyonyi, two former workmates at NTV Uganda.
The catfish between Ssenyonyi and Saava has given Mpunga some breathing space, with Ssenyonyi on the spotlight over where he got funds to build his mansion in the affluent suburbs of Kyanja and allegations of raising flashy parts in Ntinda area.
Ssenyonyi, possibly the fastest rising politician in Uganda, and still a young man at that, a face of the opposition to President Museveni whose regime is accused among other things of fanning corruption, finds himself in a query position. As spokesman and LoP, Bobi Wine his boss, knows the party brand is at stake with such allegations.
This website has now been briefed by a reliable source that Bobi Wine is frustrated with the melodramatic scenes staking his LoP and spokesman in the mud of corruption. He fears NUP is going to get stained with these allegations, and believes Ssenyonyi mishandled his own public relations crisis.
Bobi Wine and his party have always accused the courts of being against their causes, and now when cornered, Ssenyonyi ran to court to scare off journalist Saava, it makes their script weak. If they went to court and Ssenyonyi wins, what will they ever say about Ugandan courts. And if he loses, the world will believe Ssenyonyi is indeed corrupt and so are all allegations against NUP bosses who have been cited in corruption accusations.
Fingers are crossed.
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