I’ll be the best Presidential candidate – Mao

Norbert Mao the Vice President of the Democratic Party (DP) and LC V Chairman of Gulu district.
Has said he will be the best candidate in the 2011 Presidential race since he will represent the interest of the whole country, even though he is from Gulu (Northern Uganda).
Mao was speaking to hundreds of supporters at a DP rally on Friday evening at Makerere University.
He was accompanied by MPs; Erias Lukwago (DP) of Kampala Central and Odonga Otto (FDC) of Aruu County.
“The day we will need to want change badly, change will come”, Mao said “The day we say enough is enough is enough, change will come”.
He bragged of the strength DP’s youth movement, the Uganda Young Democrats (UYD) has attained over the years.
Erias Lukwago, Norbert Mao, and Fred Mukasa Mbidde are among the young DP politicians who developed through the UYD.
UYD has also won Guild elections in various higher institutions of learning of; Makerere University, Kyambogo and MUBS over the years.
“No party as got a muscular youth movement than ours, not even the National Resistance Movement (NRM). “There is no NRM without President Museveni,” he said.
Like Barack Obama in the American Presidential elections, Mao will be attempting the focus his campaign on the vibrant and active youth population to improve the party.
“In a few weeks we are going to re-brand the Democratic Party, change it and those who insulted it will eat their words”, he said.
“Just as Tony Blair did with the Labour Party when every one thought they were finished”.
UYD’s Vice President Mukasa Mbidde who also endorsed Mao’s candidature emphasised that this was the time for young and pre-independence born leaders.
“My view is that we get a President as somebody born after independence, because every body born before independence has a pre-colonial virus” he said.
“Last time we had big rats and they failed. We have now decided to choose a small rat, and that is Mao”.
Mao said Clinging to power is one of the major challenges to peaceful transition of power in Africa.
But the former Gulu Municipality MP assured his supporters that he always announces his departure time.
“I would rule Gulu Municipality until my son Nicolas was old enough to succeed me. But there’s a time keeper who is even above the Movement Caucus, and that is God,” he said.
“When the master has decided, you can do nothing about it” Mao added.
FDC’s Otto graced the rally. Stating that he was glad to have graced his, colleagues’ (Mao) occasion even if he was from a different Party.
“Its shows that that we are working together, not against each other” he added.

We need to re-design the ABC strategy on AIDS – Otto

Aruu County Member of Parliament (MP) Odonga Otto has asked for the ABC (Abstain, Be faithful, and use Condoms) strategy on AIDS to be re-designed and packaged before being brought to the public.
This comes after reports that the ABC strategy has been change to ABC squared by adding circumcision as a new component to the strategy.
Speaking during a public dialogue on morals at Makerere University on Friday, Otto said that they amend the rules because they are not working.
“You can not Abstain, Be faithful, and again use Condoms because every thing is different. And I challenge the architects of that slogan in parliament that they are misleading the youth”, he said.
“We need to re-design and re-package the whole thing before bringing it to the public. Because now there are youths who are running around that if you are circumcised you can not get AIDS”.
The ABC strategy has been seen by many people as the force behind Uganda’s success story in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
Uganda is respected all over the world for reducing the infection rate to just 11%, from 30% in the mid 1990’s.
But Otto disagrees with the Ministry of Health’s figures saying that the figures are doctored for donor reasons.
“I think for every 10 Ugandan, at least 3 are HIV positive”.
Mrs Mbuga Winfred the Deputy Dean of Makerere University and the patron of the Youth Alive Club in Makerere University said.
A University should be a place where you register to get a degree, but not an area where you abort or get AIDS.
Mrs Mbuga adds that a research conducted by Makerere Medical School students reveals that AIDS prevalence is lowest among first years. But says the numbers are shocking as the move second and third year.
Otto adds that the low HIV/AIDS prevalence in Europe and North America can not be attributed to legalisation of prostitution.
He said that legalisation of prostitution, which he does not support where the workers are screened and people officially pay, can not stop AIDS prevalence.
“if that is the case then AIDS would not be doing very well in Ethiopia and Thailand where prostitution has been legalised”.
Sub - Sahara Africa is the hardest hit region by the HIV/AIDS prevalence. About 600 people in South Africa die daily of AIDS related illnesses.