Change of government in Uganda has been violent – in 1966, 1971, 1979, 1985 and 1986. In 2011 the change of government should be peaceful. But why do we need a change now? Here are some compelling reasons.
1. Museveni was groomed in the early 1980s and imposed on Uganda by powerful western powers to serve their interests in the Greater Lakes region and not those of Ugandans.
2. Museveni waged a destructive guerrilla war with backing of foreigners – some 25 percent of guerrillas were Batutsi from Rwanda who ran the country until they left for Rwanda in 1994 and took our national security secrets with them making Uganda vulnerable. Some still hold key positions in strategic public institutions and business sector and will continue to do so as long as Museveni is in power. Uganda’s economy is in foreign hands – even the strategic post office!
3. Museveni has treated Uganda and Ugandans as conquered territory and people. Since 1986, he has openly despised us as primitive, bankrupt, empty cans, lazy and drunkards not only at home but abroad as well including in the United Nations General Assembly Hall where 192 heads of state and government meet every year in September.
4. Museveni has openly said that Uganda land is for freedom fighters. A large number of these so-called freedom fighters are Batutsi from Rwanda. He is now preparing the young generation of Bahororo to take over under the leadership of his son whom he is openly grooming for Bahororo dynasty.
5. As a reward for supporting him, Museveni returned Uganda to Britain as a neo-colony – British Asians returned and repossessed their properties possibly including those that had been compensated and nationalized British enterprises were privatized and returned to British former colonial owners. British civil servants returned as experts and advisers to run Uganda as they did during colonial days. To create room for British employees, Uganda experts were kept in exile and those at home exiled under the pretext of earning better salaries abroad than at home. It is estimated that some 700,000 qualified and experienced Ugandans live and work abroad because they are not welcome by NRM government which continues to rely on expatriates that do not quite understand Uganda history and development challenges. That is why Uganda has returned to colonial primary exports and destroyed domestic industries that add value and create jobs.
6. Under foreign protection, Museveni has virtually destroyed the country and people through inappropriate policies and governance based on fear using instruments of repression in the name of maintaining law and order.
7. Bad development policies have turned Uganda from the “Pearl of Africa” growing a wide range of crops for domestic consumption and export into a semi-desert suitable for nomadic cattle herding (Museveni’s preferred profession) and export of meat to earn foreign exchange to meet needs of the rich leaving Ugandans to starve as happened in the Roman Empire. Because of climate change with low and irregular rainfall, many peasants are abandoning agriculture and drifting into urban areas where there is no work.
8. Uganda land is increasingly being owned by foreigners mostly from Rwanda especially since 1959 following the social revolution that chased away Tutsi and their cattle. They were welcome by their kith and kin in Uganda and encouraged to stay and occupy land that belong to Ugandans.
9. The incorporation into the 1995 Constitution of freedom of mobility, settlement and ownership of land anywhere in Uganda and use of local languages hid Museveni’s desire to create room for Batutsi from Rwanda and Burundi to own Uganda land. Batutsi speak Kinyarwanda and Kirundi languages similar to Kifumbira language and present themselves as Bafumbira who are citizens of Uganda. Most Balaalo who are increasingly occupying big chunks of Uganda land are not Ugandans. Ugandans are therefore losing land to foreigners very fast. Without land you are powerless and that is Museveni’s ultimate plan to render Ugandans landless and powerless.
10. Museveni has deliberately crippled education in quantity and quality. Many children are dropping out of school. Museveni has deliberately refused to support school lunches which improve school attendance and performance. Those who struggle and complete education are functionally illiterate and virtually unemployable.
11. Meanwhile Museveni has created private schools with all that is needed for modern education – good buildings, teachers with good salaries and adequate instructional materials for children of rich families mostly Bahororo and their Bahima and Batutsi cousins. Many children from rich families are studying abroad. Museveni is preparing Bahororo children to take over the administration of Uganda when time comes.
12. Museveni has deliberately crippled the health system. Buildings he inherited are crumbling and there are no medicines and staff especially in rural areas where the majority of Ugandans live. Consequently communicable diseases including those that had disappeared such as jiggers, scabies and trachoma have returned with a vengeance. The number of funerals is an indication of the worsening state of health and health care in our communities.
13. Meanwhile Museveni has facilitated construction and staffing of private health facilities for the rich who get modern care at home and in many cases abroad.
14. Museveni has deliberately crippled food and nutrition security. By encouraging production of high value crops like vanilla, cut flowers and production for cash rather than for the stomach, Museveni has deprived Ugandans of adequate and balanced diets. Consequently traditionally nutritious foodstuffs such as beans sim sim and fish have become major export commodities. Ugandans are increasingly eating foodstuffs dominated by cassava and maize. Eating too much cassava and maize results in neurological abnormality including insanity which is increasing rapidly. Uganda’s human capital formation is in real danger.
15. Museveni has deliberately ignored agriculture and rural development to cripple Ugandans. He deliberately destroyed cooperatives, neglected rural roads and ignored agro-processing to add value, reduce losses and create jobs. Thus, some 90 percent of Ugandans who live in rural areas and derive their livelihood from agriculture have been virtually abandoned. NAADS exists in name only.
16. Museveni has deliberately focused economic growth in urban areas especially the capital city of Kampala where Bahororo in collaboration with foreigners do their business. He has deliberately treated Uganda as a city state like Singapore. Consequently, 70 percent of Uganda’s GDP is concentrated in Kampala with two million out of a total population of 32 million.
17. Museveni has deliberately refused to facilitate job creation through public works to absorb our youth workers. Those who have jobs are paid so little that they cannot meet basic needs of food, housing, clothing, education and health care. Most of the unemployed are university graduates. It is estimated that over 80 percent of Uganda youth are out of work. Museveni knows but he has done nothing about it because unemployed people are easy to corrupt and exploit.
18. Loss of land, poor education and health, poor diet and unemployment handicaps have combined to produce a high level of absolute poverty. Over 50 percent of Ugandans now live below the poverty line and twenty percent of them have become poorer. Uganda has not reached the standard of living attained in 1970 in spite of generous donor support for 25r years.
19. Impoverished and marginalized Ugandans have lost their values and fallen victim to all sorts of vices including crime, sex work with all the attendant problems, teenage pregnancy and loss of pride and dignity. Without pride and dignity you are virtually finished as a human being and that is Museveni’s goal.
20. Thus, Museveni has turned a once vibrant, innovative, smart, self-reliant and cheerful people into a bunch of miserable beggars waiting for elections to get match boxes, salt and yellow tea shirts from Museveni.
21. Museveni refused to end the war in northern and eastern Uganda. According to stories he wanted to depopulate the area and create land for Balaalo nomadic cattle herders. The international community forced Museveni to end the war and he does not deserve credit.
22. Museveni has refused to restore the Luwero Triangle where Baganda accommodated him to wage a destructive guerrilla war. Museveni has focused more on security institutions to suppress dissent at home and invade neighboring countries in pursuit of Tutsi Empire dream than rebuild Uganda economy, institutions and infrastructure. For example, the dilapidated Uganda mission building at the United Nations in New York just in front of the General Assembly Hall and next to the new US mission building shows how Museveni has neglected Uganda institutions.
23. Museveni has deliberately impoverished and marginalized Bairu people in south west Uganda in Ankole and Rujumbura although we have overwhelmingly voted for him and NRM. Time has come to liberate ourselves from centuries of servitude. February 18 gives us the golden opportunity to vote Museveni and his oppressive NRM out of power.
24. Baganda have been chased out of key ministries such as foreign affairs, finance and central bank and the business sector that gave them visibility and benefited their people generally. In spite of their lower education and experience Bahororo have taken over.
25. Museveni and NRM have demonstrated that they did not capture power to foster development, peace and prosperity for all. Museveni has effectively used selected Uganda elites to promote and protect the interests of Bahororo people and their cousins. That is why Museveni does not care about crumbling institutions, infrastructures and cultures. He is even ready to help finance funeral expenses than provide funds for primary school meals. This is a clear message that Museveni will destroy Uganda and Ugandans if not stopped on February 18, 2011.
26. Taken to their logical conclusion, these actions constitute a crime against the people of Uganda.
27. Museveni should therefore pay for this crime by inter alia losing state house on February 18, 2011.
28. We appeal to Uganda soldiers, police and intelligence officers to respect the right of Uganda voters to choose their leaders freely. Your job is to protect Uganda citizens as the gallant security forces of Tunisia and Egypt did in January and February 2011 respectively. The world is watching you.
29. We appeal to international and domestic observers to be impartial. You must report on whether or not the electoral process from voter registration to the announcement of results was free and fair. Ugandans are not interested in statements like “in the circumstances”. That is what has created a problem since the 1980 elections. “In the circumstances” language has helped keep ruling parties in power.
30. We want a peaceful, free and fair outcome. In this regard Buganda (by virtue of its population size, level of literacy and strategic location), security forces and observers have a special responsibility.