Tag Archives: uganda

Correcting Uganda’s distorted history

One of the reasons Uganda is engulfed in a political economy crisis is partly the result of colonial distortion of Uganda’s history and attributes between Bantu people on the one hand and Nilotic people on the other hand. Because of race theories that dominated Europe at the time of Africa’s colonization that put whites at the top and blacks at the bottom of the racial pyramid, it was assumed that black people including Bantu of eastern, central and southern Africa had no civilization and lived in darkness which is not a subject of history hence the teaching of European history in African schools.

The first European explorers, colonial and missionary officers to Africa came from the aristocratic class imbued with racial prejudices. “Britain had access to the cream of the Oxbridge [Oxford and Cambridge Universities] crop… targets were those energetic young men of aristocratic demeanor worthy of the colonial calling…”(D. Rothchild and N. Chazan 1988). ”The European colonists of the 19th and early 20th century described Africa as ‘the Dark Continent’. According to them it was without civilization and without history, its life ‘blank, uninteresting, brutal barbarism’… So strong were their prejudices that the geologist Carl Mauch, one of the first Europeans to visit the site of the 12th century city of Great Zimbabwe, was convinced it could not be of local origin, but must have been built by some non-black people… The Tory historian Hugh Trevor-Roper wrote in 1965, ‘There is only the history of the European in Africa. The rest is largely darkness” (C. Harman 1999).

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Why birth control in Uganda will be difficult to implement

Suddenly Uganda is witnessing a flurry of birth control activities. Where the urgency has come from is still baffling. Uganda is a country that has lost – and still losing – so many people since the 1970s due to the Amin murderous regime, the guerrilla wars in the Luwero Triangle and in northern and eastern Uganda, AIDS pandemic, malaria particularly in Kabale due to climate change that facilitated mosquito invasion of the district with devastating outcomes and increasing diseases of poverty. According to Shifa Mwesigye (Observer {Uganda} August 2010) there is a conflict between on the one hand Uganda leaders and politicians who want more children and on the other hand donors and experts who want fewer children. That is already a major stumbling block that needs to be resolved first.

Birth control programs in Kenya that started in the late 1960s experienced implementation difficulties because they were imposed on an unwilling national leadership soon after independence that was won after a devastating Mau Mau liberation war. But since birth control was a prerequisite for foreign aid, the Kenya government went along but was not keen on birth control implementation. This lesson should not be lost on those eager to implement birth control in Uganda where resistance is still very strong.

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Uganda: Rich country, impoverished people

In many ways, Uganda is like the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It is a country that was created by the British for ruthless exploitation to benefit the mother country. Following Lord Frederick Lugard’s and Winston Churchill’s visits to Uganda and their appreciation not only of the beauty of the country, fertility of soils, plenty of rainfall and abundance of water in rivers and lakes, moderate climate, a unique biodiversity system and above all, it’s dynamic and innovative people – ‘the Chinese and Japanese of Africa’ – a decision was taken that Uganda would become a center for producing tropical commodities that would feed Britain and the rest of the world.

Reports from travelers, missionaries and explorers are unanimous about communities that later formed Uganda in 1894. They produced a wide range of food crops, herded livestock (cows, goats and sheep) and kept poultry, manufactured a wide range of products of good quality and traded surplus in local and regional markets in eastern and central Africa. Specialization according to ecological comparative advantage (fisheries, herding, manufacturing and crop cultivation) increased productivity and total production. At family level, there was a complementary division of labor. Men cleared fields, hunted for game meat, tended livestock, built houses, carried crops from the field to the homestead and defended the family while women sowed, weeded and harvested crops, cooked, cared for the home and tended to children. Domestic foodstuffs were supplemented by a wide range of wild fruits and vegetables and wild game. These pre-colonial communities enjoyed a comfortable standard of living and accumulated capital. All this changed after Uganda became a British territory through destructive ‘pacification wars’ especially in Bunyoro Kingdom.

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A social and economic agenda for Uganda in the next five years

Whichever party wins next year’s (2011) elections, it will need to form a government that will revise the agenda the NRM has governed on since 1987 if it wants to avoid criticism as a government that has lost touch with reality.

The development plan launched a few months ago is a repeat of structural adjustment. That is why it has not been heard of since its launch. It was arranged to silence disgruntled citizens and buy time for 2011 elections. Commentaries from nationals and foreigners are all in agreement in private and/or public that things have not gone well for the majority of Ugandans under the NRM regime. Between 1990 and 2001 Uganda’s population living below $1 a day was 82.2 percent (A. K. Chowdhury and S. Erdenbileg 2006).

The first government act after 2011 elections is to make fundamental changes in the Ministry of Finance and Central Bank that have driven Uganda’s economy on a ‘bad road and in the wrong direction’. Their focus on market forces and individual effort hoping that the sum total of those efforts would benefit all Ugandans equitably has been an inappropriate policy. While reliance on foreign experts may continue to be necessary, this should be limited to specific cases for short-term assistance only. Uganda has a reservoir of well trained and experienced people who are not being used or used properly because loyalty has replaced competence. Most well-educated and qualified Ugandans are scattered around the world or hibernating at home because they are not wanted for fear they might replace incompetent relatives and friends of those in power.

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Museveni has deceived the world about democracy in Uganda

Not too long ago, I had a conversation with an old friend. We discussed a wide range of global issues and accidentally stumbled on Uganda. My friend confirmed what others have been saying that Uganda and Museveni have become indivisible – you cannot discuss Uganda meaningfully without putting Museveni at the center. He added a new dimension – Museveni is two persons in one. He elaborated by observing that what Museveni says about Uganda is often different from what he does. He emphasized that the difference between rhetoric and action is planned. He suggested an analysis of what Museveni says about democracy and what has actually occurred on the ground. Below are the findings.

Museveni has stressed that meaningful democracy must embrace “government of the people, by the people and for the people”. He adds that in the case of Uganda democracy must be three-dimensional: “parliamentary democracy, popular democracy and a decent level of living for every Ugandan… There should be an elected government, elected at regular intervals and such elections must be free of corruption and manipulation of the population… There must be people’s committees at the village, Muluka [parish], gombolola [sub-county], saza [county] and district level…

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Why has Rukungiri district become ungovernable?

Rukungiri is a small district located in southwest Uganda and far away from the seat of government in Kampala. Since Uganda’s independence in 1962, Rukungiri has been visited by Uganda presidents – Obote, Amin and more so by Museveni – or sent more delegations to Kampala than any other district in an attempt to understand and solve the district’s intractable problems. These problems of a political, economic, social and ethnic nature have included suicide, death or injuries from security forces’ gunfire, forcing people into exile or fleeing permanently from the district, snatching voting cards from opposition members at gun point and using some unsealed ballot boxes including in the opposition presidential candidate’s polling station.

Although many people do not want to hear it, the problem in Rukungiri district is the political and economic struggle between Nilotic Bahororo rulers and Bantu Bairu (slaves) ruled ethnic groups since pre-colonial days. Bahororo – a Batutsi and numerically very inferior group that entered Rukungiri district in 1800 from Rwanda via short-lived Mpororo kingdom located in southwest of former Ankole district – believe that God created them to rule others irrespective of their education and/or work experience. In fact Bahororo agree that God gave Bairu physical and mental strength to labor for the comfort of their Bahororo masters who have specialized in military strength. This superiority complex of Bahororo was consolidated during British colonial rule that used pre-colonial oppressive chiefs as their civil servants. Britain which never lost control over Uganda has continued to favor Bahororo over Bairu since independence.

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As I see it – Yoweri Kaguta Museveni

In March 1986, a month after Museveni became president of Uganda, Africa Events magazine published some articles including two by Yusuf Hassan and Yoweri Museveni on Uganda. The two articles are so linked in their messages of hope that they need to be considered together to see the extent to which what they contained has been upheld.

Yusuf Hassan observed that the triumph of the National Resistance Army (NRA) signaled a return to sanity in Uganda, which was ushered in with unlimited joy and jubilation. The NRA conveyed “Its message of a comfortable today and a better tomorrow”. Suddenly there was freedom from fear and instant death. The NRA reintroduced respect for human life, property and democracy. And NRA’s message was loud and clear; “If you kill a citizen, we’ll kill you”. Museveni formed a broad-based government which included all political movements in the country. Hassan concluded by observing that the way the new Ugandan leadership went about its functions bode well for the future of Uganda.

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Uganda’s diverse society needs diverse leadership

When Ugandans meet formally or informally, the political economy, future and diversity of Uganda come up. What has been recognized is that Uganda’s diversity is an asset and a strength that should be utilized properly to bring about equitable distribution of the benefits of that diversity. Many times, as discussions progress, my mind races back to what Kaunda former president of Zambia said about diversity in his country. He observed on several occasions that although merit is important in appointments and promotions, he had to use it carefully to meet the needs of Zambia’s diverse population. He stressed that in trying to strike regional balance, he picked the best trained and experienced from each region so that he maintained professionalism and regional balance.

In Uganda the concept of merit has been applied differently under the NRM government since 1986 with unanticipated adverse outcomes. There are cases where merit considerations applied by the appointing authorities have resulted in top or strategic positions going to people from the same family, same ethnic group or same region. The western region is believed to have benefited more than any other in Uganda. However upon closer scrutiny you find that within the western region some families or ethnic groups have benefited more than others. Further analysis has demonstrated that merit was not even strictly applied causing discomfort in various quarters.

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Museveni’s philosophy and mission for Uganda

Yoweri Museveni who is a Nilotic-Muhororo was born in Ntungamo district, some forty miles from Mbarara town in southwest Uganda. Just before becoming president in 1986, Museveni was interviewed by John Nagenda. The interview was published in March 1986 in New African magazine. He articulated his philosophy and mission for Uganda. He has been president for over twenty years and he is running again for re-election to another five-year term starting in 2011.

Yoweri Museveni reported that his movement and army adopted a correct political line based on the philosophy that the people of Uganda are sovereign and anybody who is against the people is an enemy of Uganda. He added that the people of Uganda were united because they have common interests – same problems caused by natural barriers and backwardness due to lack of development hence their desire to act in concert than in conflict. Tribalism and religious conflicts were induced by leadership which pushed artificial interests rather than those of the population.

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Uganda needs harmony between government and the people

Uganda’s history since colonial days is characterized by forceful relations between the government and people – with the government applying instruments of force on the governed to get what it wants. Resistance to colonial rule ended through the use of force and foreign troops. Other examples of force used on Ugandans during colonial rule include the following:

1. Taxes in cash which were imposed to force Ugandans to become migrant laborers in areas growing export crops. 2. Uganda was forced to abandon industries and to grow cotton, coffee, tea and tobacco for export. 3. Labor reserve areas were forced to not grow export crops. 4. Different tribes with very little or nothing in common were forced into administrative units.

5. Indirect rule chiefs and advisers were imposed on the people. 6. Strict law and order was imposed through an elaborate system of police, prisons and the judiciary. 7. Ugandans were forced to abandon their gods and their traditions including medicine and culture. 8. Ugandans were forced to sell their raw produce cheaply to Asians who processed them and enjoyed the benefits of value addition and higher world market prices.

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