People Power Considering ‘Plan B’ after Botched Consultative Meeting

People Power pressure group is considering new tactics to ensure that their planned consultative meetings effectively take place.

Joel Ssenyonyi, the People Power spokesperson notes that police is determined to frustrate their consultative meetings even after getting clearance from the Electoral Commission. His remarks come hours after police thwarted their planned consultative meeting at Pope Paul Hotel in Ndeeba.

According to Ssenyonyi, what transpired at Ndeeba is a clear indication that whatever they do will be rejected by the police.

He says they have been left with no option but find other measures that can be backed by the law to continue with their planned meetings.

Last year, the People Power leader, Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu alias Bobi Wine declared his 2021 presidential bid and announced plans to conduct countrywide consultative meetings.

He wrote to the Electoral Commission seeking permission to go around the country to consult citizens about his presidential ambitions. Subsequently, EC allowed him to hold consultative meetings.

However, police frustrated his first attempts to hold consultative meetings citing failure by the musician turned politician to conform to a number of requirements as per the Public Order Management Act.

On January 9, 2020, Kyagulanyi met with security agencies and Electoral Commission where they appeared to have agreed on how the consultative meetings should be conducted.

The Deputy Police Spokesperson, Polly Namaye, said after the meeting, Bobi Wine had to submit to police a ten-point strategy to be followed to ensure violent free meetings, which he didn’t do.

Namaye stresses that unless the said strategies are presented to police and discussed as agreed upon, police will not allow the consultative meetings to go on.

Ssenyonyi insists that police are just tossing them around given the fact that the People power leadership wrote to the Police management informing them about their meeting as required by law.

URN.