KAMPALA, Oct. 31 (Xinhuanet) -- Seventy-five members of parliament(MPs) in Uganda are planning to file a suit in court against the leaders of the ruling party, to compel them to declare the source of the money they are paying to some MPs, state-owned weekly Sunday Vision reported.

    The 75 MPs were opposed to a third term in office for President Yoweri Museveni from the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), which recently announced it was funding the promoters in parliament.

    The suit is against Haji Moses Kigongo, first vice-chairperson,Bidandi Ssali, second vice-chairperson, and Nsaba Buturo, spokesman of the NRM.

    MP Aggrey Awori was quoted by the weekly as saying that the non-NRM MPs also want the court to confirm that the NRM leaders are inbreach of "Political Parties and Organizations Act 2002" which provides that any donation, member contribution in cash or kind must be made public.

    NRM spokesman Buturo said on Thursday that NRM was funding its promoters in parliament, in a bid to popularize the White Paper that seeks to change the constitution in the countryside.

    Buturo said at a press conference that "I assure you that it isnot taxpayers' money. It is money that the NRM leadership has mobilized for its members from out friends." However, he did not disclosed the friends.

    Buturo also said that "it is not true that money has been givento MPs so that they support the proposal to lift the presidentialterm limit. It has been given to NRM promoters to go to the countryside and explain the contents of the White paper. The allegation is MPs are being bribed. How can NRM buy its members?"

    Out of 297 MPs in total, 204 believed to be NRM supporters havebeen given 5 million shillings (2,900 US dollars) each totaling toover 1 billion shillings (590,000 dollars) for facilitation to consult the electorate on the White Paper.

    Awori said the NRM would soon be given a notice of their intention to sue.

    Of the 75 MPs who joined the suit, 35 are from the Uganda people's Congress (UPC), 15 from the Democratic Party (DP) and 25 from the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), according to Awori.

    Ugandan parties have been preparing the 2006 presidential and parliamentary elections.

    According to the 1995 constitution, president is limited to twoterms. President Museveni who is also NRM chairman, was elected and reelected in 1996 and 2001 respectively. Enditem