IS BETI KAMYA AN OPPORTUNIST? I CAN BE VICE PRESIDENT IN MUSEVENI'S CABINET

•                             I can be VP in Museveni’s cabinet – Beti Kamya
  

  
  
   Former Rubaga North MP Beti Kamya has revealed her willingness to serve President Yoweri Musevenis government.      
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• Publish Date: Aug 13, 2014

By David Lumu

IN a rather bold move, Beti Kamya, the president of opposition party, the Uganda Federal Alliance, has said she is ready to serve in President Yoweri Museveni’s cabinet if appointed as vice president.

The former Rubaga North MP, whose catch phrase is “change the Constitution and trim the powers of the President”, said Museveni has since 2001 been inviting her to join his cabinet and the offer was not juicy enough.

“He has approached me many times,” Kamya said on Tuesday in an illuminating interview on Urban Television. 

However, she said if the offer is for being the vice-president, a position that is currently occupied by Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi, she would certainly jump ship and serve.

Kamya said: “I think I can manage the vice-president office in the Museveni cabinet. I would surely serve under that capacity.”

However, Kamya was quick to point out that her only roadblock would be the constitutional order of ‘collective responsibility’.

“I don’t think it would be easy to work in an environment where you need to be part of collective responsibility,” she said.

Before breaking ranks with the party FDC in 2009, Kamya served as special envoy in Dr. Kizza Besigye’s office and was a strong activist during the Reform Agenda days.

Kamya fell out with FDC after a bitter row over the succession of the party chairman, Sulaiman Kiggundu, when he passed on. Kamya sought to replace Kiggundu, but the party argued that its constitution had to be followed.

Before joining politics, Kamya served as the executive director of the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre (Entebbe Zoo) between 2000 and 2004.

An ardent advocate for federalism, in 2011, she tested the presidential campaign political waters, emerging 5th (with 52,782 votes) out of the eight contestants in the race.

Kamya also took off time to debate the efficacy of Museveni’s current cabinet, which, she said, is below expectation.

However, Kamya singled out trade minister Amelia Kyambadde as the only stellar performer so far in the pool of the over 60 ministers.

Kamya said the Mawokota North MP has done a great job. 

“I think Amelia has done a good job,” she said.