PNC affirms opposition to 'Buger Bill'

The People?s National Convention (PNC) has officially now taken a position to oppose the Representation of the Peoples (Amendment) Bill.

It said the party?s position was taken by its authorized hierarchy and that this was known to active members of the executive and the general public.

?It is not the practice of the PNC, as a party, to conduct its internal affairs through the media so the party, on this occasion, will not follow Mr John Ndebugri into the media and provide him information which he has refused to access as a member of the party, even as he remains an absentee vice-chairman,? it said.

In a reaction statement signed by the party?s General Secretary, Gabriel Pwamang, to Mr John Ndebugri, the PNC Member of Parliament (MP) for Zebilla, who had asserted that the party had not taken any decision on the bill.

Mr Ndebugri, who has been hauled to the disciplinary committee of the party for his comments, which have been described as damaging to the image of the party, has made it clear that he will not appear before the committee.

He termed the committee as a kangaroo disciplinary committee, which had no legal backing from the PNC constitution.

The reaction said it was unfortunate that Mr Ndebugri, who was not the leader of the PNC in Parliament, caught the eye of the Speaker when the bill was being debated but Mr Apasera, the substantive leader of the PNC in the House, did not catch Mr Speaker?s eye, even as all the Minority MPs took their seats and left him standing alone.

It said for the past 10 months, Mr Ndebugri had refused to have anything to do with the running of the party and devoted his energies to matters of personal priority, while the party functioned effectively in the absence of the substantive chairman.

It said the party had moved on, in spite of Mr Ndebugri?s dereliction of his functions in the leadership of the party.

It said Mr Ndebugri, who is the first vice-chairman of the party, had, in one breath, described the disciplinary committee of the party as a kangaroo one and at the same time claimed to be its chairman.

?The PNC is a party regulated by its statutes filed at the Electoral Commission (EC) and the disciplinary committee is provided for in Article 67 of the party?s constitution, with jurisdiction over all organs and individuals in the party,? it said.

?It was trite learning that no one is above the law and in the PNC we take this principle seriously and actually live it. Mr Ndebugri is alleged to have conducted himself in a manner that tended to bring the name of the PNC into disrepute and public ridicule as a party that espouses positions that it has not taken,? it said.

It said the committee met to conduct preliminary investigations into the charge and he was given the opportunity to be heard, even at that stage, but he refused to attend. Nevertheless, the committee met and after deliberations, it decided to institute formal proceedings against him and invited him to attend.

The statement said the committee would meet and that whether he attended that meeting or not, it would decide on the matter and if he was found to be in breach of party discipline, the committee would recommend sanctions against him to the standing committee.

?Under the party?s constitution, sanctions for breach of party discipline include expulsion from the party. If he is aggrieved by the decision of the standing committee, he has the right to petition the leader of the party and after that he can even appeal to the national congress of the party,? the statement said.

?The PNC assures the public that there are no sacred cows in the PNC, if there are any in some other parties.