The hyped #March2Parliament #AnitaMustResign #EndCorruption is now more of nuisance value than a well-informed, genuine and spirited fight to cleanse public service of corruption. Many of them are social and political charlatans seeking personal validation possibly even unaware of possible ulterior motives, the reason they urged others to come to the streets while themselves stayed a safe distance. But the failure to listen and proactively respond to the youth complaints, Uganda’s image as a democracy, tourism and investment destination has been badly maligned which hopefully we shall collectively rebuild. It is not too late for government leadership to invite, receive, listen, and robustly engage with corruption complainants and offer candid assurance that it’s being addressed.
Uganda GenZ are meekly tying a pale imitation of Kenyan GenZ who have forced President William Kipchir Samoei Arap Ruto to climb down the high horse. As an NRM ideologue, I write with a heavy heart that instead of active civic, ideological, and democratic engagement, we have chosen to confront Gen Zs so far peacefully demanding an end to corruption with brute force on street corners. Indeed, government should be firm against outlaws first by isolating the bad apples from the good without being brutal or highhanded while enforcing law and order measures. NRM, must redraw its politics back to the early years when civic persuasion and ideological engagements were the primary and principal methods for winning over policy and political adversaries however obnoxious or militant they were.
The past week hasn’t been rosy, although we thumped chests in misplaced triumphalism over Gen Z mostly making noise on social media menacingly demanding action against the alleged corrupt for which they have been slapped with criminal charge of being “Common nuisance”. I know President Yoweri Museveni is following these events and will eventually manage it but by which time a lot of damage would have been done.
To frame all those demanding transparency from elected leaders as traitors and pawns of negative foreign interests, when publicly it is admitted that corruption involving ministers, MPs, Permeant Secretaries, Accounting Officers and other public servants is widespread and becoming endemic, with many facing criminal prosecutions, is disingenuous. ‘Foreign interests’ shouldn’t be used as bogeyman to scare off demands for accountability.
While no injuries, deaths, thuggery, looting or destructions have been registered like in previous similar protests or recently in Kenya, the optics of heavy military fighter vehicles on street corners scaring hell out of would-be looters, violent regime changers or innocent Bazzukulu isn’t very appealing.
That the protests have been neutralized and 115 suspects are before courts of law is all well. But Uganda has been here before with 2001 treason and rape charges against Kizza Besigye, Robert Kyagulanyi 2018, MPs Allan Sewanyana and Mohamed Ssegirinya which all collapsed spectacularly. Today, among security agencies, there is a cliché when addressing opaque operations where the public is told about “intelligence-led operation” to imply meticulous work, yet many recent cases have exposed shallowness.
Fabricating or exaggerating ‘intelligence’ in the past including on locusts and Covid19 in 2020/21 to siphon money led to many embarrassments to government, and therefore inuendoes of foreign funding thrown about without substantiation to escape scrutiny should be taken with a heavy pinch of salt. We hold our breath that police investigators will not bring used vehicle tyres and similar stuff to claim the youths who until now even with the provocation have remained peaceful intended to burn the city or parliament. Majority of Ugandans may be silently watching the unfolding drama but are unconvinced that demands for accountability on public officials are all the devel’s works funded by negative interests.
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