Re: [Ugnet] Muntu: Are Clouds Starting to Gather?

Museveni, like any other man, puts his pants on one leg at a time. This is a fact. He like God who is invulnerable. No one person can piss on a people for ever..that is against the law of nature.

Now that the people of Uganda have tried every possible avenue, the argument would go, to bring about peaceful political change in the country, ( through the courts, appeals to the the so called Protector's of Democracy in In the Western World e.t.c)

....all but in vain.. it appears soon there will be no option left, but for the people of Uganda to speak the language which the dictatorships understands...One thing is for sure, If I was the dictatorship , I would not count on the UPDF for help..doing so is simply seeing merges which disappears with time. The Muntu speak with visionary images of what may happen in our beloved country.

Major General Mugisha Muntu last week hit the headlines with hard but calculated talk.

A friend quickly remarked to me that finally the clouds have started to gather in the skies. In a matter of time Uganda's starved political appetites will be wetted.

Muntu's rhetoric was short enough to excite strong desire without revealing much of political act in store.

Watch this: "Why should we be ruled so badly? We deserve better. We deserve dignity as human beings. We're capable of changing our society - politically - and we shall do it. There must be no doubt about that."

Muntu's remarks were precise and straight to the point.The retired general and army commander seems to have taken some time to understand his audience. His rhetoric is informed by the fears and the political apathy out there.

The population, especially those in the opposition know they are dealing with a dangerous opponent. He is armed to the teeth with military arsenal, and to the pocket with cash to influence the electorate.

To be taken a serious contender against the incumbent, one has to come out and allay the fears above in clear and absolute terms. Those yearning for change need a person who can look the incumbent straight in the eye and engage him in his own currency.

The incumbent is known for scaring the population by reminding it of "his" army spiced with "we shall kill them."

If the incumbent promises fire, his opponent has to promise fire too. This re-assures the doubting public. It is the language the ordinary person understands out there.

The Democratic Party has been commended for its court actions and resorting to the law to re-direct the political process. But this does not strike a chord with the ordinary person. One still has to translate that into language the ordinary electorate understands.

Court actions on political issues while appreciated, are still regarded as intellectualised processes removed from ordinary rhetoric.

Uganda's opposition has over the last decade failed to take on the incumbent by the horns. So have the civil society. A majority of them spend their time displaying their political acts behind the safety of radio talk shows.

They cannot be blamed. The fear out there is real. For all the talk about the incumbent being liberal and very tolerant, the superstructure of Uganda's politics is lock, stock and barrel militarily constituted. That would perhaps not be much of a problem if the army were non-partisan. Or if the incumbent ceased reminding the population that it is "his" army and will use it to deal with any trouble maker - those that challenge his hold on to power.

This tendency has created despondency among the population. The common belief out there is that only military action can challenge the incumbent.

One ought not be deceived by the political face value of Ugandans to believe that they are the cowards they look. They might fear to demonstrate against the incumbent because they know his operatives can shoot to kill, as has been the case while dispersing "illegal" rallies. But they would be much willing to resort to arms and engage the incumbent in an "equal match".

Not surprisingly, the incumbent is of the same mind set. He openly despises unarmed opponents, kicks them in the back like they were his political football. On the other hand he takes armed opponents seriously.

The Ugandan opposition in their desperation had turned to the donor community in the hope that they would help tame the incumbent.

For over a decade, the mainstream donor community were too eager to listen but always sided with their "darling" the incumbent. They always gave him the benefit of doubt and kept the money taps flowing.

It is only now that some have started to wake up from their slumber to realise that the incumbent they knew is not the exact one in bed.

The incumbent has turned strange and now bites with impunity the hand that feeds him. He can now tell off the donor governments, IMF and World Bank.

In the diplomatic practice, the donors would take none of this "nonsense". Unfortunately, many might.

They will accept that the incumbent has grown wild. But they will also be quick to remind the opposition that their relationship is with Uganda as a state, not the incumbent or his government. They will say it's up to the Ugandans themselves to sort out their leadership crises, not donors.

This remark often makes many in the opposition get pissed off. They will quickly remind the donors how they acted differently in the case of former Kenyan president Daniel arap Moi. For the same sins Uganda's incumbent is committing, the donors starved Moi of cash the entire last decade of his very long rule.

That talk too can no longer sell an opposition candidate. Many Ugandans are increasingly giving up on the respect and hope they had for the donor community; because at one time they bark like a dog about to bite the incumbent but never come around to biting.

The opposition ought to be frank to themselves in the first place: The donors will not soil themselves helping the opposition. They are already doing enough. Some of the remarks they have made against the incumbent are as good ammunition for a creative opposition.

Like God helps those that help themselves, the donors will only help an opposition that helps itself.

Muntu seems to have picked the signal, both from the population and the donors. If he stays consistent, continue to look the incumbent directly in the eye and take him by the horns, he will win the hearts of the millions yearning for a challenger with the "political buttock" to take on the incumbent.

Re: [Ugnet] Muntu: Are Clouds Starting to Gather?

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