In a word, President Museveni had no government. A crisis committee of MPs of the ruling Movement was appointed last Thursday night. The committee has literally been huddled over paraffin wicks deep into the night working on a possible amendment to the constitution, which is likely to come as early as this week. When the multiparty opposition, whose activities have been banned since 1986, railed against the referendum, claiming it was a gimmick to entrench a one-party state, the Museveni government said there was no way out. The multipartyists said a simple constitutional amendment that restored pluralism could solve the problem.
Fate can be cruel.
The same Movement government now finds it might have to amend the constitution it called sacred with a stroke of the pen. This case has had more than its fair share of ironical twists and turns. The lead judgement in favour of Ssemogerere was written by a fearless and maverick judge, Amos Twinomujuni. Twinomujuni was director of public prosecutions in 1985 when the Milton Obote government brought charges against Ssemogerere for seditious remarks uttered against the president and the chief justice of Uganda. Now he, and the other four judges who were unanimous in their decision, are breathing life into a court which was beginning to stink with the reputation of pandering to the government.