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contests: Besigye announces the FDC decision to
challenge the presidential poll results. Right is Sam
Akaki |
Complaints: - Fraud and bribery - Disenfranchised supporters -
Falsification of results - Election Act breached
By Charles Etukuri
and Anne Mugisa
The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) is going to
court to challenge the outcome of the 2006 elections.
The party
has released its provisional results from 47 districts indicating 51%
against President Yoweri Musevenis 49%.
Addressing a press
conference yesterday at the FDC headquarters in Najjanankumbi, FDC
president Dr. Kizza Besigye said his lawyers had prepared a petition and
were going to court within 10 days. Besigye also refuted claims that he
was planning to flee the country.
Without doubt, I will not only
stay in the country but stay very vigorously, he said. He said unlike the
2001 petition which showed the rigging, this one would show the extent of
the effect of the vote rigging in the election.
We demonstrated
the level of violence and cheating but we did not demonstrate the effect
of those malpractices. We are now focused on demonstrating the effect of
those practices, Besigye, who was flanked by FDC officials Sulaiman
Kiggundu, Wafula Ogutu and Sam Akaki, said.
He said they had
collected at least 50% of their evidence and expected to collect at least
90% by the end of the week.
We have only 10 days in which to
assemble evidence through the whole country and petition. We are
determined to go into it even knowing the threat and the unlikelihood of
the court to resist intimidation. We are aware of all this but I think we
have a duty to show the country and the world what has happened here, he
said.
He said President Yoweri Museveni exceeded the need for a
re-run by only 600,000 votes and the FDC would show that the stolen votes
far exceeded that.
He said FDC had a tally centre and was still
collecting data of the results declared at the polling stations witnessed
by party agents.
He said their centre was established not to
publish parallel results but to give the party the basis of challenging
the Electoral Commission (EC) results.
He condemned the dismal
performance of the EC in the February 23 elections, adding that the
commission should redeem itself during the local elections by addressing
the raised concerns.
Besigye said FDC would continue pressing for
a change agenda. Whether we form a government, which we still believe we
shall do, or whether we dont, we shall remain firmly focused on our
agenda for change in this country, he said.
Besigye also
criticised the government and security officials, including Police chief
Maj. Gen. Kale Kayihura, for accusing his party supporters of violence. He
said the accusations were intended to prepare ground for further
harassment of FDC supporters. You will recall that similar tactics were
used soon after the 2001 elections, when Kampala was rocked by a series of
bomb attacks and it was claimed, as it is now, that the election losers,
referring to me at that time, were responsible for the bombs that rocked
the city, he said.
He said despite that, the Movement would not
deter them from working for the creation of a new Uganda. He asked his
supporters to remain calm and be certain that their political struggle had
intensified.
He commended them for being brave in the face of
harassment. Asked why he was now saying there was rigging when he had
earlier said that it would not happen because his party was vigilant,
Besigye said, I am not God to say that there will be no rigging. I can
only say that we can do everything within our power to contain and deal
with the rigging but I cant stop the EC from falsifying the results,
neither can I stop the military from arresting our agents and thereafter
stuffing the ballot boxes, Besigye said.
Ends |
