Dokolo Woman MP, Cecilia Ogwal has refused to forgive Minister of Security, General Elly Tumwine, who she accuses of attempting to ‘kill’ her.
She also accuses the Minister of using his position in the army and security circles to doctor the CCTV footage implicating him (Tumwine) that was submitted to the Committee of Rules, Discipline and Privileges.
During today’s hearing, Ogwal said that Tumwine’s attacks have left her health at risk having come at her shouting repeatedly and wished the footage had displayed the voice, saying his attacks left her in state of confusion.
“He said it loudly, gripped with anger and fury. General didn’t come to greet me, General came to attack me. I was frightened, my pressure has consistently been going up, you can check with my doctor. If anything happens to me through direct shooting, poisoning I know Tumwine is involved,” Ogwal said.
She added: “I don’t understand why he would attack me twice. The way I feel threatened by one of the top military leaders in the country, I am not in danger alone but my family. I feel threatened, my health is affected and if anybody, I should have been the last person to attack in that manner.”
Bugweri County MP, Abdu Katuntu asked Ogwal not to make statements without evidence, saying there is need to protect the credibility of the investigations.
Katuntu also asked Ogwal if she is in position to forgive Tumwine after he (Tumwine) asked for an apology on the floor of Parliament to which Ogwal said that the incidence of the 23rd July means he can say another thing and mean another.
“In my mind Tumwine wasn’t referring to that nasty incidence in the 7th Parliament. I don’t think I would forgive him, I don’t think I would tell committee that I have ignored what he did. And attacking me because of statement I made that subject means Tumwine can follow that incidence until he sees me six feet down,” she said.
Committee Chairperson, Ongalo Obote defended Ogwal arguing that forgiveness is something personal and that even if Ogwal announced that the General is forgiven it wouldn’t sway the committee from the path it is taking.
“The question should be left to the member and General decide for themselves. It is not something that the person should say when they haven’t had time to reflect upon. It is a personal decision,” said Obote.
Ogwal told the Committee that she has known Tumwine since the 6thParliament and the two were together in Constituency assembly as framers of the 1995 constitution and that she had no special interest in contributing to the debate raised by Atkins Katusabe (Bukonzo West) but felt compelled to make a contribution with the aim of redirecting the attention of the general to the gravity of the matter.
According to Ogwal, General Tumwine struck an arrogant tone when he started bragging about his long stay in Parliament, boasting of being one of the champions of discipline within the NRM.
During the debate last week, Katusabe accused Tumwine of ordering a shoot and kill directive to the army and when questioned about the directive, the Security Minister is said to have told him off to go and report to the useless Parliament if he deemed it right.
It is during the debate when Ogwal reminded Parliament of the moment Tumwine pulled out a Pistol during the debate on spraying homes with DDT to control mosquitos in Uganda, a proposal Ogwal opposed.
Ogwal said that General Tumwine is a seasoned legislator and is one of the key leaders in this country and in position to understand the rules and that her contribution on the matter was actually to refocus the debate.
She said: “His statements clearly demonstrate that it had some touch of arrogance, it was lacking humility despite the fact that various speakers did emphasis the importance of respecting the institution of Parliament. He wasn’t responsive to the mood on the floor. He has been here for long, so nobody should remind him of the rules.”
It was after making the contribution that Tumwine allegedly attacked her bitterly, accusing her of lying about the pistol incidence, saying he never pulled a pistol at Ogwal.
