The Monitor
Kampala - Monday, 02 August 2004 09:02 pm
Letters
Aug 2, 2004
We must all be free to associate
Freedom of association is the bedrock of democracy, which is exercised through loyalty, be it to friends, party, nation or country or any other. In order to exercise this freedom, one needs a lot of space if you asked me. The part that federalism plays here is the creation of the space in order to be able to practice this individual conviction and preference. It is virtually impossible to exercise loyalty without space.
Federalism helps create this space by preventing the abuse of power by putting competing centres of power and institutional checks and balances in place. The demarcation of responsibilities and power among the different tiers of the federation is a case in point.
The quest for federalism is not about restoring "lost glories" but has a lot to do with democracy; it is the desire not to be forcefully lumped into a Movement. It is the desire to be able to make personal choices and to be free from those who arrogate themselves an omniscient role.
In brief, federalism is the desire to be left alone to take one's destiny in one's own hands. Simply put, it's unity in diversity.
Here is how parties should talk to govt
I would like to give a piece of advice to the various political groups taking part in the on-going dialogue between the Movement and other political organisations.
*To the UPC: You need to be very humble. The political situation today seems to be like that in the UPC days. The minds of the voters have been almost irreversibly polluted against you. It will take time before you return to power.
*To the Movement: Please drop that greed which has kept you around for the last 18 years. It is unethical to bank on power based on artificial support of an intimidated, ignorant rural community that has no choice but to live positively with poverty and wars. Think beyond your stomachs, Uganda's future is greater. Should you continue to be dishonest, you risk irrelevance in future just like the UPC seems to suggest today.
*To Reform Agenda: Remember that you are a breakaway branch of the Movement. Do not turn it into a dialogue between the Movement and itself. Also, try not to soil the principled type of leadership that Dr Kizza Besigye introduced into Uganda's politics. *To DP: You are too docile. That meekness only works where the ground is level.
*To the rest: Much better to participate as political interns than self-seeking spoilers.
Clement Lalobo, Jinja.
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