Where does Museveni’s vision originate?

THE OLD VISION

Every time that the issue of succession and power transfer comes up for public discussion, somehow we are quickly and sternly reminded that Uganda, a population of over 34millions does not have visionaries. This position is delusional and one tinged with nothing but utter fear. This fear is not about how Uganda will do post Museveni, it is a situation where a man becomes fearful of his pictures in the mirror. The old Museveni with vision now fears the new Museveni without vision.

Museveni has been in power since 1986. The children who were born in 1986 are the ones running amok in the streets of Kampala jobless and realizing sadly that their promised future has been squandered. Museveni must be wondering and asking himself, what kind of a father breeds his children and conditions them to rely on his vision until they are past the age of twenty six? Most properly groomed African families expect their children to have their own lives and dreams at the tender age of 18 for liberals and 15 for conservative individuals.

Now given that Museveni has publicly and privately chided his comrades in the struggle, that none of those people have a vision and are not trusted with the country, the question we should be asking is, where does this peculiar Museveni vision come from? Is it divine?

Here is a theory that may perhaps explicate this vision mystery. The 1980 Museveni who had morphed from Fronasa claimed that he had a better vision for Uganda. Later he politically seduced a bunch of indolent youths into the bush to form his original 27 guerillas. One would assume that in the process, they shared a common vision and aspiration. The NRM ideology and the many point programs that came to pass were supposedly not created by Museveni alone. There were ambitious young men in his tow, who shared vision, shaped and reshaped the path to what they considered good governance and a better Uganda. They all aspired for a Uganda that would treat everyone equally and on merit.

These men for sure espoused similar vision with that of Museveni. If they didn’t, then how come Museveni never shared this strange vision with the rest of his men? I have argued again that it is very difficult to trust Museveni because he has no commitment to anything, not an agreement, not to conscience either. It is further humiliating and annihilating for the men who have supported this regime at every possible opportunity, only to be humiliated in public that after all, they are as mediocre as every other peasant – with no vision.

One really wonders where and when Museveni acquired this gold standard vision upon which every other contender’s ability to govern Uganda is being measured. Clearly the Museveni of 1986 did not envision Uganda with potholes, corruption, nepotism, tribalism, barbarianism, dilapidated healthcare system and all that we live by now. This is perhaps the reason that Museveni of today, lives in the shell of the Museveni of 1986.

But for Museveni, he will soon realize political isolation. This is when he will revert to the heightened use of brutality for companionship. Ugandans are making strong statements through the numerous bi-elections against his disastrous vision. If he is not listening, then he will realize late that his vision has faded. Uganda is no longer a bastion of hope, but of gloom. It is a place where the fundamental principle of reciprocity has long been traded for the very ills of vanity.

But my confidence is that Ugandans are very visionary. This is how they were able to hold their turf against colonialism, Idi Amin and all the other brutalities that they have endured. The same way other leaders have left the scene will most likely be replicated, because even Idi Amin didn’t believe that there were visionary Ugandans. That is primarily the reason he prematurely declared himself President for life.

Finally, let us be truthful and honest to you, Mr. Visionary President. Uganda is ready for change if you are not. Do not hold us hostage to your vulnerability. Ugandans have resorted to civil mannerism to seek for this change. Do not under-estimate the simplicity embedded within this civility; it is a deviation from your mindset of genocidal strategies.

END.

NRM revolution reproduces our painful past, fundamentally

FALSE REVOLUTIONS:

As we head towards our 50 years of “independence”, it is important to recognize that the essence of “revolution” has been truly assaulted by liberation movements. This article is an indictment of the NRM since 1986 when it took over power. Here, I will attempt to analyze the failed premise of the initial ten point program and the “fundamental change” promise which were the underpinnings of the so-called NRM liberation struggle.

The mainstay of this article is that the NRM ten point programs have become the ten commandments of failures, a peregrination similar to most socialist-cum-marxist political organizations in Africa. The “fundamental change” promise of near utopia has degenerated such that the NRM is fundamentally reproducing the conditions of the painful past and it’s very opposite - the “No Change.”

We expect that social and national liberation movements have the potency of fundamentally transforming society in the stewardship of men of abundant good will. The NRM came to power through castigating the UPC regime of Dr Milton Obote on many fronts. But Ugandans today can now take stock to realize that between Dr Obote, Idi Amin (both RIP) and Lt. Gen. Dr. Yoweri Museveni, the previous leaders were more patriotic and proper to the common aspirations of the nation to the extent and within context of their time. It is only in Museveni’s regime that comparisons of Idi Amin’s performance surfaced, because Ugandans now know very well that the NRM and Museveni are self-seekers intent on advancing personal interests at the expense of the masses.

The ten point programs were very meaningful to many Ugandans and indeed, it articulated the fundamental aspirations of many Ugandans. But the eisting programs of the UPC regime were tested and unrivaled. That Museveni’s fundamental change never arrived, because the contestation of this was murdered in 1996 when Ugandans had to go through that severe election. The year 1996 for many of us was the landmark point of deviation from liberation of “the wretched” as Franz Fanon once put it.

The nature of campaigns, the reaction of President Museveni to democratic challenges and the amount of bribery, brutality and use of force at that time and in subsequent elections illustrated that the NRM will never have a credible credential of commitment to Ugandans.

Henning Melber, the Executive Director of the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation in Uppsala, Sweden has done significant and elaborate works in studying the nature of African liberation movements in southern Africa; how they grow, succeed and quickly degenerate to become worse than the establishment they uprooted from power.

Melber argued that liberation organizations never overcome their militaristic mindsets of categorizing their citizens as pro- or anti- liberation once in power. In essence there is this element within them that glorifies violence as a purifying force. The absurdity is that most of these liberation armies have similar organizational structure and operations as the establishment that they aspired to replace. Once in power, they quickly replace, rather than cause change. In the long run, they transmit the same stressors that their predecessors experienced.

In Uganda, the RC system was not any different from the Mulango kumi concept of UPC government and so were the Resident District Commissioners (RDC) system from Special District Administrators (SDA). In essence, the fundamental change slogan was indeed a change of guard and that change of guard became the no change once all the guards were effectively changed.

Melber argues that there has never been legitimacy of claims of prudence with any military movements since the French revolution. It is common place that liberators quickly become oppressors, victims of yesterday turn into perpetrators and the regime starts to degenerate, to resemble and surpass the old one. This betrayal of trust is etched in the psychology of perpetuating fear as Indian psychologist Ashis Nandy eloquently put it “liberators tend to reproduce the past rather than offering genuine alternatives”.

We the people of Uganda have the right to say that the NRM regime has truly reproduced the past in a more profound and perhaps, fundamental way. If the political ills that they accused the Obote and Amin regimes for have not been overdone, then somehow, in the next few years, we shall live in awe.

In both the pre-Museveni regimes, social services were very operational, today; the malls have taken over such that our hospitals have become a supermarket for vending death. Our poor infrastructure has become determinants of our precarious lives. The political space and human liberties are at its worse conditions; there is more apathy among Ugandans today towards the central government over corruption and inefficiency than at any time in our history of existence.

When the fundamental change became “no change at all”, the NRM had written the ten points of failures for Uganda. In its tenure, they have deliberately executed it to reproduce our painful past.

END.

Patriotism and Nationalism: What do these mean to Ugandans? I

PATRIOTISM and NATIONALISM

It was a little wonder that the NRM government spent walloping billions of taxpayer’s money in promoting patriotism among the youths in Uganda. It is true that most Ugandans are feeling a sense of dire fatigue of living under this despotic and repressive regime. The youths continue to carry the scars of broken system that offers them much of dwindling hope than a prospect for brighter future.

Ugandans today have to endure a life in which the very systems that should otherwise liberate them from backwardness, continues to vault out of place to serve it’s very opposite purpose. The justice system stands against justice, the Police oppose civil liberties and banking system expropriates from the economy. Ugandans live in a country where the Police incentivize anarchy and chaos; the army disrupts the peace and the government is the key stumbling block against the interests of its citizens from obtaining basic and fundamental social services. In Uganda, the corrupt are the heroes and honesty is treated with utter travesty.

For the youths, the education system is a trap that offers them the same old recipe of knowledge that helps to their dysfunction. The system is against the indigenous cultures, traditions and society, and that which strives for mis-educating the youths. Given this forlorn of predicaments, the young people feel as though they are outside the shades of this Country.

The basis of Patriotism talk is inherent in the provision of the 1995 Constitution which stipulates the duties of Ugandan citizens as “The exercise and enjoyment of rights and freedoms is inseparable from the performance of duties and obligations; and, accordingly, it shall be the duty of every citizen to be patriotic and loyal to Uganda and to promote its well-being”. And the NRM, on its website, described Patriotism as “love for Uganda and its people, as well as the readiness to sacrifice for them.”

It is true that Ugandans must love their country and their fellow citizens and must strive to protect the image and products of Uganda. Such feat could be easily attained if the rulers believed in that principle. Ugandans believe that it was sheer mockery for the government to launch such a wasteful and expensive venture, well knowing that money alone and club membership in schools will not procure patriotism.

The young people want to feel the physical presence of the hands of government, in improved education and sports facilities, in security for their parents at work and in their homes, a just system that supports democracy and the flourishing of justice system. They want to stand shoulder-by-shoulder with a civil police force and take pride in victorious military that defends the liberty of every citizen indiscriminately and consolidates the territorial integrity of Uganda. In these very formal and noble frontiers, the regime has failed. As such, it is the Ugandan government that has served the very opposite for which it forged a social contract with the people of Uganda and thus, the mutual exclusivity of the interests.

But what really is Patriotism, is it merely the love for a country or merely sentimentalism being fronted to justify a budget? Many authors and scholars have pronounced themselves on this subject of patriotism. Most captivating is the work of Paul Gilbert in a book “The Philosophy of Nationalism.” In that book, Paul Gilbert eloquently contrasts Nationalism and Patriotism. Nationalism, he argues, is the belief about the proper object of patriotism, namely, one’s nation (p.5). Accordingly, Patriotism is merely a sentiment that is given rise to by nationalism. Patriotism is love, the passion that one directs towards their country and nationalism is a core set of beliefs, reason for which one adheres to his country. Gilbert refuses to equate Nationalism with Patriotism and clearly illustrates that the latter is the products of the former – Patriotism is the manifestation of Nationalism.

This subject is imperative and although this may not be an exhaustive treatment of it, this piece serves to elicit debate on the causes of the erosion of loyalty to our country. It may create an alternative and viable lens through which the continued destruction of our country can be assessed. The significance of this debate belies the very notion that Ugandans feel a continuous sense of being deprived of their citizenship. The opportunity to perform their constitutional role as citizens of Uganda is limited under repression because of the narcissistic personalities in government.

Uganda is harvesting the dividends of NRM's Siasa.

Every person interested in writing and sharing opinion in Ugandan media has at one point in life written about the subject of corruption. In essence, corruption as a subject has gained celebrity status. It is even strange that being corrupt in Uganda today is considered trendy. The corrupt are honored and respected by many Ugandans who carry them shoulder high or relishes in the material consequences of corruption. In Ugandan society, corruption is a relative and a very hypothetical concept.
All Ugandans don’t like corruption. They know it and identify it easily when it happens. Diabolically, corruption is a means; it also has character. It appears that corruption is a cultural way of the people upon which they procure favors. I long concluded that the white collar bureaucracy is an impediment to African development and its demand for accountability is an alien concept in the African brain far from being realized.
I will be accused of being Eurocentric and an avid anti-African mindset. I am actually Pan Africanist professing Afrocentrism. My defense is obvious. Africans are no longer Africans in the real sense of African traditions and have never been for the last three hundred or so years. This is obviously projected in the mindset. Africa is a dichotomy of West or East; Arabs or Euro-America. They are either Christians or Muslims. They are all afraid of identifying with negated African traditions considered backward and primitive in the purview of the Western civilization.
Generally, Karl Marx ascertained that religion is a poor man’s opium. Africa is a highly polarized place in terms of religion, but it is also a place for the wretched and largely illiterate. “Illiterate” as determined by the western standards, an imperial calibration. In those terms, majority of Africans are illiterate and minority, usually those educated in the western system are considered elites. Here is where they learn social and political philosophy – the mode of western reasoning, so alienating to the African social realities and the basis of Siasa.
Corruption has never been a sole problem of Africa, but that of humanity as a whole from time immemorial. Corruption persists in every continent of the world but manifests in different forms. We are only rich, poor, corrupt or accountable in as far as we meet or fail, thereof, to meet the standards of the West. No matter how varied their history and social evolution, we as Africans must conform!
The manifestation of “corruption” in a contemporary society like Uganda thrives on its socio-political culpability to this vice. The origins of corruption in Uganda is entrenched in NRM/Fronasa  ideology being espoused by the likes of Yoga Adhola and Museveni, also called “Siasa”. Siasa is a concept upon which Kyankwazi was founded and it implies mass mind manipulation using lies and deceitful techniques– simply put, a grand scheme of brainwash.
Common sense dictates that when a social contract is cultivated on the foundation of falsehood, then it is naturally shaky. Ugandan society is now reaping the dividends of Siasa and that is evident by the lack of conscience among NRM cadres in public service who arrogantly debase public trust. First and foremost, the NRM regime is not legitimate entity since it forcefully usurped the majority will to secure a social contract. As a consequence, the justification of continued tenure of the regime is encumbered upon excessive use of sophisticated forms of brutality. This also sustains the lifeline of the regime’s cultivated corrupt, inept and kleptomaniacs. Every regime in Uganda has proven to provide its own scalawags; Rapscallions or Scoundrels.
Given the natural order of things, the compendious choice of action is to persist in regime overhaul. With it might comes the unfortunate collapse of the predatory pseudo middle class set on the public purse. Previous regimes had its own corporate bases and they too collapsed immediately upon the advent of the NRM fascism. The challenge is ours since every generation has an obligation to stand up to be counted or winnow into submission. The Siasa harvest is ours to pick and dry or uproot and discard. Its debilitating impact on social services remains a social threat as it diminishes our humanity. I loathe saying the obvious but a false social contract is simply untenable!
END

I doubt UPDF captured Maj Gen Ceasar Acellam

LRA: Insurgency in Northern Uganda

A statement associated with the Whitehouse that was reported in the Ugandan tabloid - The Redpepper, and published on May 17, 2012 edition indicate that President Barack Obama has recognized the highly hyped capture of Major General Ceasar Acellam as an achievement for the UPDF and their US military allies. Indeed, if it is true that this LRA third in command was actually captured by UPDF, then the Ugandan Army deserves all the big-ups.

However, the circumstances surrounding the so-called capture of Maj General Acellam are very suspicious because of the many facts that have emerged so far. I doubt whether UPDF really captured Maj General Acellam. Apparently, it is easily sustainable to argue that Acellam simply negotiated his way out of LRA to freedom, contrary to the bluffs and media bleeps that UPDF is perpetuating about an ambushed capture and so forth.

Examining the scenes of capture, one does not need a forensic scientist or special investigator to conclude that Ceasar Acellam was a man on his way to surrender. First, he was holed up with his family, a 21 years old wife, a child and housekeeper (I wonder where their house was). Secondly, a full Maj. General had no escorts and was armed with AK 47 containing few rounds of ammunition as if going for a hunting expedition. Given the fact that the Acellam is clearly inefficient in gait mobility due to the gunshot on his left leg, he was clearly limping with the help of a stick and could not outmaneuver UPDF ambush all by himself. The confidence and utterances by the “captive” during press conference illustrated clearly that the “capture” was pre-planned and conscientiously executed.

The UPDF spokesperson claimed that there were few fire exchanges, who shot at who, for what reasons? There is no way that a person with a properly constituted mind can believe that UPDF made any efforts to capture, other than receiving the Major General. Period!

Nonetheless, it is proper to give credit where it is due. I could agree that the pressure mounted on the LRA by a combined UPDF and US Marines’ special units could have yielded an opportunity for Acellam.  Further, as strategist, using a language of “capture” by UPDF protects and encourages the other commanders/fighters to consider jumping ship.

We know that since the killing of Otti by Kony, the relationship between Joseph Kony and Ceasar Acellam has not been the same. Acellam was confidante of Ottii and vice versa, but Acellam was also less brutal in the frontlines as depicted in various narratives and confessions from former LRA fighters and captives. These traits endeared Acellam to various political kingpins and it is the reason he is associated with liaising between LRA and Khartoum (intelligent coordinator) and his name does not appear among the top LRA commanders indicted by ICC.

It is imperative to understand that how the government handles Maj General Ceasar Acellam will set pace for other LRA remnants to surrender or not. For many years, UPDF has had the least interest in dismantling LRA. Any efforts shown towards rescuing the captives and reducing the field strength of LRA, including capturing its leadership should be highly regarded. 

Fortunately, the Acholi community would wish to forgive Acellam, and government of Uganda should heed to this inner plea by availing him Amnesty privileges. This will encourage othe LRA fighters to exploit the existing opportunities and to quit jungle life. The message is that they (LRA) should embrace peace and reclaim their life when this opportunity still exists.

In conclusion, it is very improbable that UPDF way laid and captured Maj General Ceasar Acellam. I strongly believe that UPDF negotiated with the Acellam for easy route out.  It is also apparent that Acellam’s capture is being used as news fodder to illustrate that UPDF and US Marines are delivering on their missions. This kind of media neediness may mislead the public but most fundamental is that the chief architect of LRA – Joseph Kony is still at large. The real test of potency of this mission will emerge when Joseph Kony and his other rag tag fighters are captured and brought to justice.

Uganda as a State is an illusion right now!

The geopolitical dynamics in Eastern African is one that must be of interest to the members of the civil society. The many violent conflicts in the region have changed the political fortunes of Yoweri Kaguta Museveni by giving him a huge advantage over his competitors. The wars in Somalia and Sudan have given Museveni unprecedented relevance in the region at the time when Ugandans are fed up with him. Both the African Union and the United Nations will agree that Museveni has become very resourceful and useful person in their efforts to pacify Somalia and Sudan.
It is important to understand that President Museveni’s many years in power have come at a very high human cost. The sum total of all the lives lost in Luwero, Northern Uganda, Teso, Karamoja, Congo, Rwanda, Sudan in the last 26 years, and now in Somalia, all speaks to the success of a man that has been fueled by blood and iron. Museveni comes across as a great emperor of his time, but in essence, he is an imperial agent.
Museveni has benefitted militarily from his active participation in proxy wars in the region. He has been able to build one of the most proficient armies in the region and at high cost, he has equipped them well. The Uganda Peoples’ Defence Force is one of the most sophisticated armies according to international military intelligence. Its partisan leadership ensures loyalty to the person of the President. The majority of officers in that army are from the ethnic group of the President and that makes it easy for his control.
The other significance of the persisting violence is the political fortune that Museveni enjoys over his opponents. The very same UPDF and its affiliates in the Police have become brutal instruments of political repression at home. Because of the regional juxtaposition, Museveni finds himself in no position to empathize with the opposition. After all, it is clear that his UN, AU, US, EU colleagues for whom he has served relentlessly, cannot question his human rights credentials as yet.
Recently, a member of the British Parliament was quoted to have insinuated that the British embassy in Uganda is too afraid to point out the precarious conditions of the opposition to Museveni.  Museveni, with his pomp, has not been shy to intimidate and threaten these foreign dignitaries and the so-called donor community into subservience. The ill treatment, rampant arrests and outlawing of political groups in Uganda signifies the dearth of political freedom. Ugandans once again have found themselves under the claws of a vicious tyrant and warmonger. The dictates are that we have to invest in removing oppression imposed by a state over the people and not the social conditions that thwart human progress.
We must understand that wars in this neo-liberal era have become a commodity in the free market. Armies and leaders like Museveni become mercenaries and merchants in these wars. The dividends accruing from such a war translate into repression on the common man. The profits from such wars furnish luxurious lifestyles for the warmongers. The rest gets reinvested into the war. The ordinary person is staked and suppressed so that their taxes are expropriated violently.
The over reliance on war for political survival can inspire an additional explanation for the rampant corruption and decline in quality of human resources. The government has significantly reduced its spending on education but has quadrupled its expenditures on the Defence. The defence budget is not to protect the territorial integrity of Uganda, but the political interest therein.
Regional peace is an inevitable utopia; to attain it at the expense of social services for our citizens is as treacherous. A vibrant Eastern Africa economy without competitively skilled manpower only furthers the disempowerment of the people and speeds the process of neo-colonialism. In the liberal markets, Ugandans supply Agricultural products like tomatoes and okra in unprocessed forms. Foreign agents like MacDonald and Nandos will supply fried chicken with ketchup and mayonnaise at high value.
Without properly funded education sector we are doomed. At the moment, the essence of the State is obscure and the apathy accruing towards the State makes the charges of terrorism even for a journalist holding a pen, inevitable. Uganda as a State is an illusion to many of us!!
END

Ban on A4C is Bad for our Political Stability

The NRM’s Attorney General, Mr. Peter Nyombi has moved swiftly to outlaw the A4C (Activities for Change) political pressure group and all their activities. By doing this, Mr. Nyombi has scaled the Ugandan regime to a full blown Military autocracy. For the A4C, they have been personified and elevated in profile to the popularity of ANC in Apartheid South Africa. What transpires from here onwards will define the political future of Uganda and perhaps, challenge the sustainability of so-called political stability in the country.

The NRMO regime has been masquerading as a government which promotes democracy and rule of law. No democratic government bans the political activities of its opposition and that of civil society. The regime has abrogated many provisions of the 1998 Constitution of Uganda; most notable are provisions in Chapter 4 (Protection and promotion of fundamental and other rights and freedoms)

By creating an environment that promotes discrimination based on ethnicity in national resource distribution, the imbalances in distribution of public officers has become alarming. The regime has specialized in arbitrary arrests, detention and torture of Ugandans; it has promoted corruption and exemplified it throughout the society. The regime’s monopoly on power and organizing of phony elections has deprived it of any democratic credentials. Museveni now relies on brutality and invocation of ancient colonial rules to subdue the opposition.

Our history shows that the Ugandan society is a dynamic one that will constantly evolve through innovative ways to oppose and remove dictatorship. If Uganda is to consolidate some of its so-called economic gains, the current leadership must embrace dialogue.

We cannot celebrate lopsided economy skewed to one region and to cronies. Uganda as a whole deserves a fair share of national resources at every level of participation and decision making. This is not happening. We witness senseless extra-judicial killings and humiliation of innocent Ugandans daily. The continued use of White Boers machineries to suppress Ugandans is very heartbreaking. It reveals that the regime has adopted colonial modes of repressions and dehumanization of Ugandans.

This reprehensible brutality should enrage the international community and neo-liberal ideologues who have continued to invest in sustaining these brutes. Good governance is a requisite condition for sustaining economic growth and social development. We have learnt from many situations that when the pillars of society collapse, that society literally decays and takes longer to rebuild. We could avert such dangers through dialogue, accepting civility and humility by treating opposition groups with due respect.

President Museveni has become staunch regional collaborator and agent of neo-liberalism. His government has reneged on all its obligation to provide services to the population in preference for enriching few of his cronies. Our institutions have collapsed because of incompetence, deliberate negligence and corruption perpetuated by the very establishment.

Ugandans have been deprived of their rights to enjoy a reasonable standard of living because their souls have been sold to the capitalists. The luxuries that President Museveni enjoys are derived from mortgaging Ugandans and their assets. The moneys that he lavishes to his cronies and those stashed away in foreign capitals are the price money for the heads and property of Ugandans.

In return, the space for expression has become narrower by the day as the militarized Police unleash terror on Ugandans.  The situation is pushing many Ugandans underground, to a place where they have to make tough decisions; whether to accept living under servitude or move towards liberation to once again free our besieged country and our commodified people.

Banning A4C pressure group and prohibiting their activities only points to the direction that this government has no intentions to end its impunity. Our history is overloaded with examples of regimes that lasted for many years by subduing its’ people but eventually collapsed. The Kampala regime is worse than Kamuzu Banda’s and Mobutu’s Sse seko’s regimes combined. But Ugandans are very resilient and resolute: as you close one door, they will struggle graciously to open the next door of optimism.

What I fail to understand is why we never really learn from our tragic history. This regime has decayed and degenerated such that conceptualizing an alternative shade is inevitable!

END!