On Saturday Asuman Basalirwa clarified on his close relationship with the Speaker of Parliament Anita Among and made it clear that its the reason why some of his fellow lawyers, including Erias Nalukoola Luyimbazi who was appearing for the CBS radio debate with him, are very envious of him.
Admitting to using that relationship to make money and materially make his life better, Asuman Basalirwa explained that he is the previledged lucky lawyer who handles all Anita Among’s private business transactions, for which he gets handsomely remunerated.
“I’m one of those who determined never to cease doing my professional job simply because I have joined Parliament and become an MP. I’m sure that’s what Hon Nalukoola is doing too. I couldn’t stop doing my professional work simply because I’m an MP.”
Basalirwa added that this work relationship of handling Anita Among’s private business transactions is something from which he earns very good money and he isn’t prepared to apologize over this.
“Let’s put the pretense aside and be honest. Which lawyer in Kampala wouldn’t like to have a client like the Speaker of Parliament regardless of whether its Anita Among or someone else occupying that office? Even Hon Nalukoola there, my young brother, would be proud having such a high profile client for his law firm,” Asuman Basalirwa said making it clear that he didn’t suffer reading the hard stuff at the Law School for all those years in order to die poor.
He castigated the NUP foot soldiers and leaders at Kavule for relying on such lawyer-client relationship to demonize and destroy his name while portraying him as a total political sell out.
“Why would they resort to abusing me with all those obscenities simply because I have such a good client, who any other lawyer would be dying to have for their law firm? I vowed not to survive on only being an MP because I have my profession of being a lawyer and it’s all I’m doing,” said Basalirwa who for months has endured castigation by Bobi Wine who claims that his close relationship with Anita Among is about betraying and undermining the struggle.
Basalirwa said that Anita Among isn’t the only political leader for whom he has done legal work and got handsomely paid for his services. He remnisced about the 2016 Presidential Election petition which he and other Kampala lawyers argued for Amama Mbabazi while challenging Museveni’s election victory of that year.
“Amama Mbabazi paid us very good money even when we were his fellow politicians from the same opposition side. I remember using that money to buy a brand new Toyota Harrier, which was my vehicle even at the time I joined Parliament [in 2018]. They can’t say that I was a paupper because I had that vehicle by the time I joined Parliament.”
He added that even now, he always moves with his stamps as a Commissioner of Oaths and every deed poll or affidavit he commissions, he gets promptly paid Shs200,000.
“I have been doing this since that time of COVID among fellow MPs. Each one of them gives me Shs200,000 and at the end of the day, it becomes a lot of money my friend. So, I can’t deny that there are some monies I have made as a lawyer by virtue of that proximity that comes with being a Member of Parliament but that’s all because I’m a qualified lawyer.”
Basalirwa, who is also the Jema party President, also castigated NUP saying that it’s a party which is synonymous with something worse than “double standards.” “How can abusing people and using obscene words on them be all that there is about a party’s ideology? One time one of their [NUP] MPs privately approached me saying I know, as her lawyer, you are very close to the Speaker. He said he has a fundraising function and needed financial assistance from the Speaker.”
He added: “He asked me to help him communicate to the Speaker but on the condition that she gives the financial contribution but doesn’t personally attend the function in his constituency. He said if she attends, he will be in big problems with his people at Kavule which is the NUP Secretariat. He said he would be attacked by the foot soldiers if he ever goes to Kavule again after the Speaker attending the function in his constituency.”
Basalirwa, who refused to reveal the full identity of the NUP legislator he was talking about, said that this left him totally appalled and confused about the kind of captivity MPs endure at Kavule under the leadership of Bobi Wine.
“Dr. Sam Kazibwe and fellow panelists, that day I realized that what is prevailing in that party can’t even be called double standards, it’s something worse. They actually have no standards to talk about. That’s zero standards and let’s call it what it is,” Basalirwa said.
