Democratic Party President, Norbert Mao has lashed back at President Yoweri Museveni, saying the opposition in Uganda will not allow the country being turned into what he called a police state.
Mao was reacting to President Yoweri Museveni’s lengthy missive last week where he warned politicians against holding unlawful and illegitimate public assemblies.
While speaking on Tuesday, Mao said there was no way they were going to allow Museveni to nullify their constitutional rights by formulating laws that suit him.
“I would like to state categorically, on behalf of DP that we will not accept a police state, no matter the pretext” he said.
“The president says to assemble you must have a legitimate reason. Who decides what a legitimate reason is? A legitimate reason means a grievance. And a grievance is felt by the aggrieved persons not felt by the person who is the source of this grievance”
Mao also spoke out on Uganda Communications Communication (UCC)’s recent media suspensions, advising journalists not to shy away from their duty of holding leaders accountable.
However, he cautioned them to always remain neutral and objective in the course of their work.
“We don’t want a media fraternity of sycophants. Of course sometimes, you also go overboard in being obsessed. Journalists should not be fans of their subjects. It a bit like being a doctor, you have got to be dispassionate about what you do”, he cautioned.
However, he warned that DP would not look on as journalists’ rights continue to be violated.
