As a researcher I have interacted with many Ugandans at different social levels. All want children to do better than their parents. All want to be treated with respect. All those opposed to NRM want unity to succeed etc. However, the surprising part is that there are very few people acting individually or collectively through institutions that practice what they preach.
Look at the NRM government. It has preached modernization of agriculture but practiced very little. It has preached industrialization of Uganda but in practice the country is de-industrializing. It has preached environmental protection and sustainable management of natural resources but is threatening to give away a portion of Mabira forest for sugarcane plantation. It has preached good education in quantity and quality but cannot even provide lunches that keep children in primary school and make them perform better especially girls.
In rhetoric many Ugandans – married or not – feel that Uganda’s population is growing fast and needs to be controlled, but very few are willing to practice birth control. They feel their ‘neighbors’ should do so first.
Since the 2011 elections, I have participated in political debates to unseat NRM government because it has failed to deliver on promises. Rhetorically every speaker has called for unity. The north must unite with the south, the east with the west, the poor with the rich, the women with men and the youth with everyone else. That sounds great and encouraging.
Beyond rhetoric however differences begin to emerge and unity is threatened. Different individuals find it difficult to unite in doing business. Organizations do not last long because some individuals that do not get on committees or positions they seek in the executive bodies work hard to bring the organization down or replace elected officials at the first opportunity regardless of their performance as individuals or as a group. Or they tailor profiles to suit themselves. This is a major challenge that must be addressed without further delay.
For opposition groups to succeed in removing NRM from power sooner opposition members must practice what they preach: unite and allow division of labor to work, criticize constructively and put the interest of the organization or nation before personal interest. Go for what you can do best and complement the work of others because every member of the opposition has something to offer. If you are not chosen for job A go for job B instead of causing chaos and divisions in order to get job A or wait for the next opportunity. We cannot all get what we want when we want it either because there are better candidates or the time is not right.
As we forge ahead with plans to unseat NRM let us remember that there are forces out there trying to make us fail. There are many carrots around. We should avoid the temptation no matter the conditions in which we find ourselves.