Uganda Peoples Congress
National Secretariat
Plot 8-10 Kampala Road, Uganda House,
P. O. Box 9206, Kampala
phone/Fax:+256-41-236748

UPC Is On The Move To Victory

26 November 2008

1. As you are all aware the Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC) successfully held its Annual Delegates Conference on 21st and 22nd November, 2008 at Namboole National Stadium. The Party emerged from this conference in unity and vigour ready to confound the skeptics and match to victory. Copies of the conference resolution are available to the public.
2. In face of the ideological confusion in the world today and in Uganda in particular, the delegates, typical of UPC clarity on ideas, reaffirmed the ideology of the Party. We are a social democratic Party whose vision is to build an independent, united, democratic, just, peaceful and prosperous nation where all its citizens have equal opportunities and equitable access to national resources. The mission of the UPC as a Party of the common person is to safeguard independence and promote national unity, equality, equity and human rights for all.
3. The second epoch making decision of this conference was the adoption of a new Constitution for the Party. This is a more democratic, dynamic and youth, gender and workers sensitive constitution that suits the circumstances of the 21st century.
1. There has been mainstreaming of women, youth, workers and persons with disability into all Party Organs and Executive Committees.
2. All Executive position in the Party will be subject to popular vetting by the members through the respective Party Conferences.
3. The Presidency of the Party, will be held on a maximum of two terms.
4. There are streamlined procedures for Party discipline.
5. There are streamlined campaign structures.
6. The lowest organ of the Party, the Branch General Meeting, has been moved nearer to the people from the parish to the village.
4. The new Constitution has laid a very solid foundation for unity in the Party by enabling all members of the Party who aspire for leadership to contest all offices of leadership in the Party without let or hindrance. In the following weeks a programme of implementation of the new Constitution will be unveiled. This programme will encompass:
1. Civic education about the Constitution and in particular the new structure of the Party.
2. A massive recruitment drive.
3. A time line for internal Party elections from the Branch Executive level upwards to the Presidency.
4. A programme for identification of candidates for all elective offices in the country.
5. A resource mobilization strategy.
5. The conference gave new impetus to the Party to deal with both internal and external challenges and take advantage of all available opportunities. The new Constitution has created wide and open space for all Party members especially the youth and women to mobilize fellow youth and women and take over leadership of the Party. With a clarified ideological position, it is now much easier to distinguish the UPC from all other Parties in Uganda and to propagate its ideals and values.
6. The Conference reaffirmed the UPC membership of the Inter Party Cooperation but clarified that this is a cooperation of independent political parties. The cooperation is about working together to remove the remaining obstacles to the realization of genuine multiparty democracy. It was clarified and agreed that the cooperation has nothing to do with joint candidates or campaigns. UPC shall continue to field its own candidates at all elections.
7. Given this new impetus, we call upon all Party members to embrace the Party's Strategic Plan of which the Constitutional amendment was one of the major pillars. Let us all go out to our villages, explain the Party's values, aims and objectives and the changes brought in force by the new Constitution. This is the time for massive recruitment, resource mobilization and preparation to contest elections within the Party and at Local Government and National levels. The ball is in all our courts.

For God and my Country

Miria Kalule Obote

Party President