KAMPALA – A political analyst has urged opposition lynchpin Dr Kizza Besigye and People Power movement leader Robert Kyagulanyi, aka Bobi Wine, to put aside their political differences and unite if they are to take power.
Several media reports have reported that Bobi Wine and Dr Besigye’s teams are holding talks regarding how to proceed with the 2021 presidential elections. Bobi Wine has already declared his intention to stand for president come 2021, a move say will lead to split of opposition votes as Dr Besigye is also set to stand.
And Dr Wakida, who is also a senior researcher, says the two parties must work together for the sake of victory.
“Hon. Kyagulanyi and Besigye have been close friends. Recently, there have been disagreements in opposition political parties. It’s therefore good that they sit back and engage. It’s high time that the opposition and those who want change to organise themselves. In a democracy, you choose freely on how to associate but once you start to distrust the institution, you don’t need to get there,” he said in an interview on Monday, October 14, 2019.
Dr Wakida said whereas People Power at the moment has the favour of the people, it cannot ignore Dr Besigye.
“If you come to play politics in this country and not work with Besigye, you’re shooting yourself. The People Power group recognises that if they’re to go a mile, they must work in harmony with Besigye. People Power has the favour of the people. It’s going to require a silence of egos for all these leaders to conclude. It’s going to be very difficult to have these political parties agree if the principles don’t agree. Each of these leaders represents different people and age groups,” he said.
He also warned against taking People Power for granted.
“People Power came from different political parties. Until April last year, I didn’t take them very seriously. From what we gathered from the group, it’s a very strong movement. It’s no surprise that you see generals and other scampering. For now, People Power has the numbers. If we had free and fair elections, you’d see them compete fairly,” he added.