1st March 2016, Oslo
Dear His Excellency (H.E.) President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni!
It isn’t easy writing this letter to in this moment as your astonishing Police Force holds 300 FDC agents detained. At this moment Dr. Kizza Besigye is still under house-arrest, as you and your men does what you can destroy the evidence of a flawed election. That you claim to get 80 % of the votes; While your cadre Dr. Badru Kiggundu only gave 60%. If it was so, why were there more army men in the streets than people celebrating your massive victory? That meagre display of people happens after the Electoral Commission announced you the winner of the 5th official term on the 20th February; I am still not giving in, if you have this whole term: it is your 7th. His Excellency, I can’t shave of a decade of your rule that is disrespectful towards you.
I have a hard time writing this word about you His Excellency as a Bush-war leader, a man who has sent so many of his citizens into battles in South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Central African Republic and Somalia. It is hard to say your acting cowardly. Yes, President and commander-in-chief right now you’re acting as coward.
I know that there are many decisions to take in and to live with. As how to feed your cows and how many cars you need to travel between Mbarara and Kampala. How many you need to hire in the Special Forces Command. That his hard questions. Also it is how to be able to make yourself yet again president of the country you have been ruling since 1986.
The world is looking at your actions Mr. President. The notion of your ways getting viral now, not like when you first took power and could control the media and the people; the people can now spread information. Before the Executive get time to edit the news and message you want spread to the general public. I know that is hard to swallow as you want to rule and have the power of their minds. This is something that differs from earlier times and even when you tried to stop the social media. We know you dislike the Social Media, so during the Election Day and such you really showed how much you hate it; there is still ways of broadcasting there without the ordinary channels that you blocked. I know that hurt your pride and that your “Yes Men” didn’t know about that technical solution. During the Election Day he was also a coward to make sure that Kampala and Wakiso District got the polling material very late, while in Amuru and Kisoro had it on time. So it was cowardly to not give the same treatment everywhere especially with the short distance from the Electoral Commission office and the central region. A very cowardly move… That was so disrespectful actions from the EC and the regime toward the most populace area in the country.
Well, I called you coward Mr. President. I know that is disrespectful from a commoner like me. But the issue is that you’re disrespecting the people and the institutions you have facilitated. While attacking freedoms and liberty of other peoples in your country. That is why you’re a coward in my eyes. As you cannot and don’t have the ability to be questioned by your greatest opponent in court. Especially since you also selected the Electoral Commission and the way you have facilitated this General Election. The way the Police Force and Army has spread fear and been Partisan in your favour as they are on your pay-roll. All of this action’s shows that you’re a coward Mr. President, I know I am not supposed to say that, but I think you would understand as you didn’t give the opposition a same level between the opposition and your ruling party; The NRM your beloved NRM, Mr. President.
It is extraordinary how you have ordered the Police to rig the results and change the declaration forms, while detaining the FDC agents. That is because the original Polling Station forms would not be favour of you Mr. President. At the same time keeping the FDC Headquarter under siege and the house-arrest of Dr. Kizza Besigye; also keeping Hon. Amama Mbabazi under the same treatment on the other side of town. This proves your cowardice ways. As you could not manage the dirty laundry in public and put into systematic order during court sessions as the elections has been a shambles of procedure. Deep inside you, Mr. President you know, what I mean as you went to war because of rigged election. The rigged election of Mr. Paolo Muwanga in 1980 for Dr. Milton Obote. So that you do the same now proves how you have changed. The glory days are totally over for you!
Even with the Go-Forward and Amama Mbabazi petition. You’re still a coward. I mean that because you have acted cowardly. With surely cowardice ways of using all tools of oppression and governmental funds to secure the presidency! This is something you have prepared since the Kyankawazi Resolution during February 2014. That means that you have been two years ago. You have worked for the sole-candidacy and the road to the elections have showed you have become a coward. A sole-candidacy of a coward that can’t have a honest campaign or a honest result. Not even a honest speech or even honest pledges. As a coward you even had to recycle old pledges to look formidable in rural districts; that you only visit if there is rallies and campaigning Mr. President.
The disregard for the other parties to meet and consult their supporters for rallies and mobilization; while you could as president travel all around on government funded trips as a honourable gentlemen and leader. That proves your disregard and is a coward’s way of pre-campaigning.
The biggest coward move from you Mr. President was the booming hiring of unemployed youth in the Crime Preventers program. That was groups of youth used cowardly to intimidate opposition and the public, not securing the violent behaviour or security in general. Second cowardly behaviour was your Post-Election Violence budget and the new Personnel Armoured Vehicles (PAV) and special anti-riot vehicles just before the Election Day. That was cowardly of you and your brigade.
It isn’t easy saying you’re a coward. While the behaviour of the state your sponsor and the men you have around you make you look like a coward. You’re not acting like a proud man. This election and result is not an honest victory, if it had been so Mr. President. It would be more than Uganda Media Centre had celebrated your victory and you hadn’t felt the need to be with your cattle instead of your celebrating people. That is actions of coward.
The coward’s way continued with ban of social media and using the Uganda Communication to shut down radios and broadcasters who was not positive to you. Another cowardly move is how the Police continue to arrest and harass the journalist who follows the elections and the candidates as the ones that have lost their cameras, the ones that been detained, the ones that has been shot and so on. As you the coward you are complained at the state of journalism and the ethics they had while following your campaign trail. At one point Mr. President you suspended NTV Uganda from your trail. Others has felt your wreath and been detained and had to delete photos. You even called all Ugandan Newspapers rubbish and said you only read headlines and looked at the pictures. If you read some newspapers you might read and understand how people really feeling about you. I am sure your listening to your “Yes Men” like Hon. Frank Tumwebaze, Hon. Ofwono Opono and Hon. Dr. Ruhakana Ruganda; they will only tell you what you want to hear and not the truth, Mr. President!
Another cowardly move is the use of tear-gas and use of violence. You have also used mental violence through your hate speeches and sectarianism; something that counter the vision of you; Mr. President and you even speaks with that rhetoric as you called people around Kampala “rats” days before Election Day. Also Mr. President it is cowardly to say you are the only one who can keep the country safe. That is cowardly as you play your safety card and telling nobody else can; as most of the citizens hasn’t seen anybody else being a President.
If I offended you by calling you a coward, than I am not sorry! I am more sorry for the people behind bars, just for their political allegiance or belief in universal human rights. It cowardly not to let them counter your policies and your security outfits. It is cowardly that you not let them speak up and give them that freedom. Even one human rights activist had teaching in Namutumba district got detained for doing so! That is not peaceful and security that talk when you can’t teach youth about human rights without ending behind bars. That is a coward’s move Mr. President.
As long as you militarize politics and uses military as a tool to secure your power in the country you’re not a legitimate president. So long you use the police to harass your opposition and civil society, even citizens who are caring about politics and going to rallies. You’re a coward Mr. President. Because all of this shows that you don’t have faith in your presence or your policies. Mr. President it is strange that you don’t believe in your own programs and political framework. As it seems not to be strong enough to bring the masses or gain you goodwill. That shows the moral authority that has dwindled away over time as you have yet to fulfil ten-point program. You’re such a coward that you trust more in the Army and Police than in the political program of his beloved party!
So it is a sorry state Mr. President, your Excellency that I can call you a coward. I could have given you lot words. But that is the most fitting in the way you have threaten your opposition, given fear to your people and rigged this election to come out with honour. You’re not legitimate until the petition is sealed. President Museveni you might have run your country since 1986, but from the start of the pre-election period your actions has been of a man who acts like a coward. The cowardly move was to even amendment to Financial Management Act to make sure you had enough cash for your campaign funds. It proves how big of a coward you are when your opposition had to get funds from supporters; while you had the government funds or state funds to pay for your ferrying crowds and giving NRM village funds.
So I hope more people than me will call for what you are now. I know this will not make me popular, like Andrew Mwenda who is your golden mouthpiece. The worst thing is that you can’t shut me down. Still as long as you treat you’re opposition, your citizens and your government as your own playground, than I will continue to address you as a coward. As it is well deserved as a man who is a hero and democrat does not need armies deployed on the streets during elections, a man who has the public behind him and their votes would see people celebrate and not mourn. A man who has the legitimacy does not need army instead of the people. But you have always relied one the guns and not the votes as you only got one MP under the election in 1980. Than you used the guns and you still do. You we’re seen as a hero from taking the people away from totalitarian and despotic rulers; but now your alike them. You’re a coward who can’t leave power and a coward with government institutions and a arms. That is what you are, not the proud man who built possible democratic institutions, but instead depleted the ideals you built them on. Be proud of that, Mr. President officially a coward who is soon sworn-in for his seventh term. Peace.
Best Regards.
Writer of Minbane.
MinBane 