I write these stories with a heavy heart and watery eyes. It is heart breaking that Tutsi who were admitted into Uganda on humanitarian grounds as refugees and on a temporary basis when they were chased out of Rwanda in the wake of the 1959 Social Revolution have turned their guns on us and colonized our country and turned us into serfs to labor for their comfort. Those Ugandans who refused have been killed, jailed or forced into exile. The mysterious death of a young MP has stirred emotions of many Ugandans at home and abroad. She shouldn’t die in vain. Her untimely passing should serve as a rallying cry for all Ugandans at home and abroad with a view to making far reaching political changes.
Museveni tricked Ugandans who were unhappy with Obote and Amin regimes promising them to regain what they had lost in the political and economic areas. Catholics were promised the presidency and Baganda were promised return of federo, Mailo land and forests but none has come to pass and it is more than twenty six years since the promises were made.
During the guerrilla war Museveni’s closest allies were Tutsi mercenaries who were commanders and intelligence chiefs. Punishment was severe for anyone who asked about those guerrillas who spoke a strange (Kinyarwanda) language. Ugandans were assigned to diplomatic and administrative posts or served as rank and file that took orders from Tutsi commanders during the bush war. When Kampala was captured, there followed mysterious deaths of Uganda high ranking military officers. Fred Rwigyema (a refugee) became deputy commander of Uganda army and deputy minister of defense. Paul Kagame (a refugee) though deputy chief of intelligence and counter intelligence had more power than the Ugandan director. Atrocities that were committed in the north and east are largely attributed to these Tutsi mercenaries.
Museveni has declared that he fought and defeated Uganda army and therefore he controls or rather owns Uganda. He has likened Uganda to a beast that was hunted down and killed and Museveni can’t give the carcass to someone else to eat the meat. In other words he is saying that Uganda is his and he will do what he wants with it. He is preparing his son to succeed him. The sad part is that some development partners that are using him for their geopolitical interests are turning a deaf and blind eye to the atrocities committed to Ugandans including violation of civil and political rights as well as economic, social and cultural rights. Museveni is dishing out Uganda land to Tutsi, allocating public enterprises to Tutsi people and educating Tutsi at home and abroad at the expense of Ugandans.
People who complain that addressing Tutsi problem is sectarian or promoting genocide against Tutsi people are refusing to see the harm, marginalization, impoverishment and humiliation indigenous Ugandans are experiencing in their own country, witness what Uganda is going through right now when we should be celebrating the holiday season. From reports reaching us, some Ugandans including MPs are either in detention or in hiding because of comments they made about the mysterious death of a young female MP.
Museveni’s ultimate goal is to convert Uganda into a feudal system of lords and knights and serfs. He is grabbing land from indigenous people, his Tutsi are promoted to generals and the rest of Ugandans are languishing in absolute poverty. Many half educated Tutsi are holding important jobs they can’t manage while qualified Ugandans are being encouraged to seek work abroad and remit foreign currency to cater for the interests of Tutsi families.
History teaches us that no situation is permanent. And Uganda won’t be an exception. Uganda will be returned to its owners by peaceful means in the first instance. Ugandans are getting enlightened and are beginning to understand who is a Ugandan and who isn’t; who is fighting for Ugandans’ interests and who isn’t. They now know why with all the abundant human and non-human resources they are increasingly becoming poorer, sicker, more functionally illiterate and hungrier. Insanity, maternal and child mortality and school dropout especially of girls are all rising, painting a very bleak picture for Uganda’s future. If Mulago teaching and national referral hospital can’t pay its energy bills and power gets cut off imagine what is happening in other health facilities especially those in remote areas? We are writing these things not because we want to cause trouble but because we want to find peaceful solutions. I have made it clear that we shall use peaceful means to effect regime change but should it become necessary we shall resort to other means in self-defense.
We call on western commentators to stop biased reporting that favors Tutsi and NRM government. It is sad to read reports that Uganda is making steady and commendable economic progress. What are they looking at? Even if there was economic growth which isn’t there (3 percent economic growth against population growth of 3.5 percent isn’t something to be proud of), one needs to look at how economic growth has translated into the general standard of living. When people are disfigured by jiggers, scabies and starvation as we see in the media, none should praise Uganda for a job well done in the economy. Human conditions in Uganda are falling behind those of Kenya and Tanzania reversing the trend we inherited at independence. This isn’t progress. It is retrogression and NRM should be ashamed because it got all the resources and will it needed but squandered it through corruption and invading other countries.
Louis XIV of France squandered the riches of France on wars and extravagant life style, creating tremendous problems for his successors particularly Louis XVI who was executed in a bloody French Revolution. That is what Museveni is doing: he owns an expensive presidential jet, spent too much money renovating state house and on international conferences. He is spending disproportionately on security forces and creating a situation that will adversely affect his successors especially if they are weak like Louis XVI was.
Fellow Ugandans get ready to sacrifice if necessary because we are going to get our country back. I have already begun playing my part. Let us move from words to more action starting in 2013.
Those Ugandans and others who have problems with my writing let us arrange a debate and be challenged and listeners judge. I am ready when you are.