Tag Archives: state

Uganda is down, not out

In every society, people make mistakes. Those who recognize them early and correct them get back on the right track and move on. Those who don’t correct the mistakes suffer the consequences.

In England, King Charles I was defeated in a civil war, absolutism and the monarchy were abolished and England became a republic (Commonwealth) under Oliver Cromwell, a military commander. Cromwell governed with an iron hand and his son who succeeded him was very weak. The people of England through their Parliament decided to restore the monarchy under King Charles II with restrictions. The mistake was corrected and England moved forward.

Since the Lancaster House constitutional conference for independence, we Ugandans have made mistakes. In a rush to meet the deadline of October 9, 1962 for independence, we postponed and overlooked major issues which should have been resolved with Britain in the chair. The daunting issues of Lost Counties, Head of State, Batutsi refugees and the fate of Amin were postponed. We abandoned Ben Kiwanuka whom we knew better and welcomed Milton Obote who had just returned from Kenya who didn’t know Uganda and Uganda didn’t know him. When Uganda became independent, it was neither a monarchy nor a republic. It was simply called “The Sovereign State of Uganda” with the Queen as Head of State.

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It’s time to rethink the East African integration and federation project

The Burundi summit of East African heads of state held late in 2011 instructed the East African Community secretariat to issue new guidelines as a basis for further discussions on economic integration and political federation. Prior to the summit many meetings were held at the community headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania and in national capitals to review progress and challenges and forge a common front on the way forward.

The decision to issue new guidelines has therefore provided an opportunity to rethink the entire project by revisiting its history, purpose, benefits and challenges along the way. The idea for closer union goes back to 1899 when Harry Johnston, commissioner to Uganda, visualized unifying Uganda and Kenya under British protection. Lord Delamare and Cecil Rhodes also entertained the idea of unifying white-settler communities in Eastern and Central Africa. From 1905 white settlers held meetings regularly in this regard.

The idea of union gathered momentum after Tanganyika came under British sphere after WWI. East African governors, colonial secretaries such as Churchill, Amery and Lyttleton as well as commissioners including Ormsby-Gore and Young were active participants.

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Security forces defend the state and protect citizens, not governments

Museveni was absolutely right when he stated in 1993 that “The army [security forces] should be just for guarding the borders [defending the state] and maintaining internal peace [law and order]… That is all… They should guard what the people want, not do what the people don’t want. I do not agree with military governments… I do not think the army has a role in government… The people are the sovereign force”(Africa Report July/August 1993).

Nobody can disagree with this statement. The problem is that Museveni practices what he does not preach. He does the opposite of what he says most of the time! And he has been doing this for the last twenty five years. The people of Uganda are now fed up because he has consistently and deliberately done what the people do not want – using security forces to violate their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

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Uganda’s state house needs a new occupant

I began thinking seriously about the potential and challenges of Uganda’s development early in my life. I decided then that whatever I did for a living, I would make room for research and writing on Uganda’s political economy. I have so far written ten books and created a blog www.kashambuzi.com. I also decided very early against a single sector education because knowledge cannot be compartmentalized. I therefore adopted a horizontal approach and studied geography, economics, demography, international law and international relations/diplomacy, sustainable development and history with a focus on how they interconnect with one another. Not least, I have developed a dialectical approach in research, writing and commenting on other writers’ work, meaning that I focus on those dimensions that are omitted to give a balanced picture and enable readers to make informed decisions. For example, when I read an article about a glass half full, I comment on missing dimensions. Put differently, I go for the glass that is half empty and vice versa.

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State intervention in Uganda’s economy has become unavoidable

I stated in a July 2010 article on the difficulty of applying Malthus essay to Uganda’s population that population growth becomes a major issue in Uganda’s development discourse when the economy is in deep trouble. Amin ordered doctors to reduce population growth through contraception when the economy had run dry after all the stock from the expelled Asians had been used up. In Uganda today (July 2010) the economy is fast drying up and scapegoats are being created to justify the socio-environmental problems including rapid urban population growth, slums and wetland destruction. This is happening in large part because for over twenty years the NRM government has relied on market forces and laissez faire (let alone). Reporting on population ‘explosion’ has become an exercise in propaganda blaming Uganda citizens for over-breeding but remaining silent about massive migrations into Uganda and food exports since the beginning of the 20th century. What is happening in Uganda will not correct itself. Government intervention has become unavoidable to correct the imperfections of the invisible hand of market forces and laissez faire capitalism.

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Anomaly in the creation of Rukungiri Municipality

Rt. Hon. Speaker
Rt. Hon. Prime Minister
Rt. Hon. Leader of the Opposition
H.E. Permanent Representative to the UN in New York
Dear Sirs
This morning I sent you a message protesting the manner in which a resolution was passed by Rukungiri district council without consulting the people that have been affected.
A few minutes ago, I have just read in New Vision (Uganda) of Monday May 17, 2010 that new municipalities had been approved by Parliament. I noticed one anomaly.
While the proposed municipalities were presented to Parliament by the Minister of State for Local Government, in the case of Rukungiri the presentation was made by the MP Major General Jim Muhwezi apparently without following the normal procedure.

I have also noted that the shadow Minister of Local Government “cautioned that municipalities should not be carelessly dished out”.
If the overall goal of municipality is to divide up land and sell it as plots to the highest bidder so that the municipality raises resources, that will be a regrettable approach that will impoverish people.
It would be appreciated if an explanation would be given and what a municipality means in terms of land ownership. Many of the people in Rukungiri that have been incorporated into the municipality depend on land for their livelihood and most of them are functionally illiterate and will not be able find work outside of agriculture.
Best regards.
Eric

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