Opposition MP Muwanga Kivumbi has fired back at President Yoweri Museveni over the explosive Shs 100 million payout to Members of Parliament.
In a scathing tweet, the Butambala legislator called the cash handout a betrayal of Uganda’s national priorities—and a blatant show of favoritism to Museveni’s political allies.
Kivumbi’s response came just hours after Museveni defended the payouts in a statement posted on X, marking the anniversary of Kampala’s liberation from Idi Amin.
Museveni, writing as the “Old Man with a Hat,” claimed the funds were part of a classified budget serving strategic national interests. He framed the criticism as both hypocritical and influenced by foreign interests.
But Kivumbi wasn’t having it.
In a sharply worded rebuttal, he questioned the president’s moral standing.
“Don’t you have some shame left in you?” he asked, accusing Museveni of ignoring the country’s suffering majority in favor of rewarding loyalists who back his long-standing grip on power.
He also took aim at Museveni’s Pan-Africanist stance, calling out the president’s apparent contradiction in condemning U.S. sanctions linked to Uganda’s anti-homosexuality law.
Kivumbi argued that a true Pan-Africanist would not be rattled by Western funding cuts—especially if they came as a consequence of defending national values.
“I thought you would be proud that aid was suspended for what you termed a ‘moral cause,’” he added, referencing Uganda’s exclusion from trade frameworks like AGOA.
The MP didn’t stop there.
He spoke directly to the “Bazzukulu,” the youth Museveni frequently addresses in his public letters. Kivumbi accused the president of sidelining the country’s young population, saying they feel economically abandoned and politically irrelevant.
“These young people you exclude from your priorities want your regime out of power—yesterday,” Kivumbi warned. “They want to rebuild a country that serves everyone.”
The broader backlash over the Shs 100 million per MP continues to dominate political discourse, especially amid widespread poverty and service delivery challenges.
While Museveni insists the funds are essential to state operations, critics argue the secrecy surrounding them raises red flags.
The president’s focus on foreign influence and LGBTQ+ funding has also drawn scrutiny, with many Ugandans questioning whether such narratives are being used to deflect from real accountability issues.
Kivumbi’s defiance adds a fresh layer to the controversy, positioning him as a loud and unfiltered voice in a Parliament where many often stay silent.
