Democracy that is based solely on elections regardless of whether they are free and fair will eventually fail;
Democracy that keeps the same party and leaders in power election after election will eventually fail;
Democracy that revolves around one all-powerful leader will eventually fail;
Democracy that sends its brightest and /or experienced citizens into exile and then harasses them there will eventually fail;
Democracy that is based on economic growth and per capita income regardless of how the benefits are shared among the citizens will eventually fail;
Democracy that is underpinned by security forces and safe houses will eventually fail;
Democracy that permits corruption, sectarianism and cronyism to thrive will eventually fail;
Democracy that is based on loyalty rather than competence will eventually fail;
Democracy that is not transparent and accountable to the people will eventually fail;
Democracy that defines security in national defense terms and forgets other kinds of security will eventually fail;
Democracy that does not permit freedom to assemble, associate and express opinion against the government will eventually fail;
Democracy that presides over crumbling institutions, infrastructures and systems will eventually fail;
Democracy that does not create conditions for citizens to put food on the table, send their children to school, have them treated when they are sick, find remunerative employment under decent conditions will eventually fail;
Democracy that neglects the people including the rank and file in security forces will eventually fail.
What has been described above relates to Uganda that has been praised in some quarters as a success story in political and economic development.
The Malian coup, unfortunate as it is, in a country that has similarly been described as a success story in democracy and development should serve as a lesson to understand what could have been missed that led to the overthrow of an elected government.