Peasantry politics and the crisis of allegiance

PEASANTRY POLITICS

Recently Hon. Ojara Martin Mapenduzi dominated the national news headlines over his decision to cooperate with the National Resistance Movement (NRM) - the hegemonic ruling party. Martin was elected to represent Bardege-Layibi Constituency as an independent, having quit his membership in FDC. Martin's decision to quit FDC also caused a brouhaha, albeit, a tremor compared to this one.

This article is not about justifying the fact that Martin's move seems to have irritated a number of people. In Uganda, there still exist people who believe in allegiance to cause and frown upon flip-flops. I find the public response to Martin's shift of allegiance to be rather strange. A trend to hemorrhage opposition from Northern Uganda into NRM was long established.

The late Rt. Hon. Jacob Oulanyah (RIP) started the trend in Acholi. He once went to bed wearing a red pajama (UPC) and woke up the next day in a yellow one. People reacted with mixed emotions and they eventually settled for the status quo. At his death, Jacob was the most senior government official from the region, a position he would never have obtained had he remained in UPC.  His meteoric rise thereafter to become a speaker and northern Uganda NRM vice-chair got cemented.

A few days after Jacob's death, Hon. Norbert Mao jumped into the yellow bus.  Mao even dragged the residual DP membership he had in his hand to the signing of this same MoU as Martin - to cooperate with the NRM. Mao was appointed a minister and assigned the task of babysitting a Muhoozi project and chasing a whirlwind of political transition that will never become. That Martin has followed suit is not a novelty because many others are on the way. I am hearing a cacophony that his Gulu East counterpart - Fr Onen may have been harnessed and initiated already into the yellow fold.

Uganda is undergoing rapid socio-political changes where those in power have really concentrated power and wealth in their hands. Being a large peasantry economy, as designed by the British, Uganda actually has very little room for a meaningful opposition contribution.

The relationship between the state and the people has remained between masters and subjects. The British, in constructing the colonial state, excluded indigenous Ugandans from the colonial state spheres.  The colonial state considered the white settlers or farmers as citizens and Africans as subjects.

In that sense, citizenship rights were denied to the indigenous population. We have seen comparative studies of colonial social policies and found similar patterns of deprivation, distancing, canceling, and segregation. The Ugandan state under Museveni has retained most of these qualities that privilege foreigners over us.

Ugandan opposition is treated as state enemies - mistreated, disrespected, cajoled, kidnapped, tortured, and murdered. The same way the colonial state responded to African nationalist insurrections or liberation struggles.

Often, the contribution from the opposition is never taken seriously, with the current speaker of Parliament showing even more intolerance and greatest contempt for the opposition with their contribution. You recall their mob mistreatment of Hon. Zaake and the contemptuous dismissal of Hon. Joel Ssenyonyi 's committee reports on abuses of public office. Recently, I read with much amusement how the visit by the Leader of the Opposition to government hospitals riled the Prime Minister. There is filth everywhere in public service, most of which results from the government's dereliction of duty, negligence, incompetence, corruption, and contempt for the peasantry population.

On the side of the opposition, their response to state intolerance is terse. They have to keep a stronghold on their numbers in Parliament where they are severely outnumbered. I have seen the opposition often responding bitterly and at times applying uncharitable phrases to dismiss the impact of losing a member.

The truth is, the NRM government no longer has viable ideas or credible persons to develop the country alongside these fishermen's mentalities. Museveni has retired in power while the entire government operates on the principle of appeasement to stay put as placeholders. Martin is an intelligent person whose true potential would never materialize in the opposition. His commanding knowledge and experience of local government should have afforded him a full ministerial docket.

End.

Why Europe should pay royalties to Africa.

 

EUROPEAN PATRONAGE

Recently, President Emmanuel Macron hosted leaders from the global South in Paris to moot a global agenda to address climate financing, post-pandemic economic recovery, and the debt burden stalling the economies of the global South.

The 2023 Paris meeting was as patronizing as previous such talk shops. African leaders, notably Ruto William of Kenya and Cyril Rwamaphosa of South Africa were the most outstanding. President Ruta advocated for an equity-driven global financial infrastructure, while Cyril boldly reminded Macron that Africans should not be treated as beggars when seeking development funds.

I expected African leaders to assert to Macron that Africa’s destiny will not be shaped by a poor Europe.

We Africans allow the West to dictate our development terms. In the process, we permit them to rob us of our natural wealth and health.

 It is extremely stressful that African leaders attend such meetings when it is Europe that should present its economic case before African leaders. This mind game that inverts the global reality needs changing.  

Why should Africa perpetuate European patronage? Europe needs to keep her hands to herself.

As a matter of fact, African leaders should get accustomed to reminding their European counterparts that it is Europe that is resource poor - not Africa.

Incidentally, globalization and the resurgence of neoliberal economic policies have crafted market spaces in which Africans could evolve authoritatively with a new socioeconomic identity as a unified market with one currency. Africa must take control of its resources by any means necessary.

The West has scored so far in ensuring discordance among Africans. However, both Franco and Anglo Africa now realize the substance of their subjugation, “periphelity” and marginalization within the world order. The socio-cultural divide is now superficial and needs scraping off the skin of Africa to become a unified market force.

Neo-Pan Africanism rejects any notion of divisions along colonial legacies and coloniality that afford the West unabetted control over Africa.

Far from mineral resources and rich arable land, Africa has a young population with an average age of about 30 years compared to 55 years across Europe. The socioeconomic inequalities between these continents, however, make obsolete the advantages Africa could harness from its young population.

In its strategic discourse framing, Western legitimating institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, United Nations, et cetra, problematize Africa’s young and rapid population growth They convince us that Africa remains poor because of its high population growth – and not their loot. Why is Europe not poor because of its elderly population?

The young population of Africa is her greatest asset besides its other natural endowments. Thus, whatever asset Africa has, the West devalues and undermines it, only to find reinvent its worth for their economy. Whatever the West problematizes for Africa benefits them.

European wealth and infrastructure arose from its exploitation of young African manpower through centuries of slavery. European gold and diamond reserves can be traced to African mines. The extraction of cash crops, minerals, and free labour from colonies sustained European civilization.  European multinational corporations and individuals continue to rob Africa of billions of dollars through tax evasion and illicit financial hemorrhaging.

Without Africa, the so-called European civilization could stall.

Europe must do more for Africa - respect and compensate Africa for the horrendous crimes against humanity committed and continues to date through illicit profit appropriation, slavery, colonialism/neo-colonialism, stocking conflicts/genocides, abetting corruption, etc., – all are criminal in their constructs and intents. In fact, Europe’s continued hold on Africa through military and trade control mechanisms is the device for Africa’s underdevelopment.

Thus, Africans need to assert themselves firmly in the new world order because Europe will extract resources needed for its post-pandemic economic recovery in one way or another, by robbing Africa.

Europe needs to remit monthly compensation to Africa for looting the continent of its resources – To this date, Europe has robbed and dispossessed about 90% of African cultural heritage – artifacts and objects - that generate for them enormous revenues annually  (Owolabi, Tife, 2022) – many of which may never be returned to their indigenous bases.

The works of African decoloniality advocate and historian, Clement Emeka Akpang, highlight the depth of Europe's robbery of valuable African artifacts and objects from the colonies. Akpang estimates that a museum in France - the Musee du Quai Branly, holds nearly 70,000 African objects. The British Museum has about 69,000, the Austrian Welt Museum holds 37,000 African arts, about 75,000 in Germany, and a whopping 180,000 at the Belgian Musee royal de l' Afrique centrale, and additional 3,000 in Budapest’s Neprajzi Muzeum.

Imagine how many more are in other cities across Europe together with those in private hands and Foundations! Most of which were acquired irregularly - through coercion, deception, undervalue-purchases, self-gifts, etc.

Europe has not only stolen from Africa. They have turned Africa into a heist scene. Through unity for purpose, they have constrained Africa and turned a rich continent into a “hell-house”.

Emerging African leaders should demand, conscientiously, that Europe transforms African debts into reparation and compel Europe to remit a monthly payment of royalties to Africa for both possession of African artifacts/objects, and historical/current wrongs committed in the continent.

End.