I will not look into the whole piece that Andrew Mwenda dropped on Facebook today. Because, that is a waste of time. However, I will look at few extracts and dismiss them. Since, the realities are far-fetched. Just like pointing at cars, carrying goats or saying corruption is good for economic growth. Is all staple defence of the editor and owner of the Independent Magazine.
Surely, Mwenda knows all this, but hopes people are eating of his hands. He hopes people are so naive and lack free thought, to think that his ideas and his ways of explaining things have become bonkers. He should join in with Ofwono Opondo, get reassigned to the New Vision and UBC. There is where he belong. There is no independent thought in this man, only if it is deflect the actual issues of the day.
Just look at this: “While NRM’s political fortunes are declining, the opposition is not inspiring much confidence. The growth in the opposition’s is far below the growth and spread of disaffection with NRM and President Yoweri Museveni. The radical extremism of the two most popular cults of the opposition – Defiance and its bastard child, People Power – has led to levels of intolerance of divergent views that most Ugandans have decided to keep away from electoral politics” (Andrew Mwenda, 30.09.2019).
What is striking, how his not seeing his own delusion, but maybe some favours and envelopes makes the man close his eyes. It is like his only seeing negative and negate all acts of the state against the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) – Defiance and the People Power Movement. These are only an ill or evil, for someone who blamed Museveni of killing Garang and saying he was the common denominator of the troubles of the Republic. There years has worn off.
His seeing differently and for a reason. The opposition isn’t always right. That is a given, it has policies and ideas whose not all good. But that doesn’t defend the ways Mwenda attacks them. Like they are organizations with sacred secrets, which only the anointed could get. That is not how these two opposition parties work. It is more closer to the “orders from above” and the personality cult built around Museveni. That Mwenda should questioned, but when your paid writer for him. You will, overlook the narrative and cast the troubles on the other side automatically.
He speaks of intolerance within the opposition. It isn’t strange the opposition sees issues different from the NRM. As the NRM and the authorities are arresting, detaining and directly using oppressive means to silence the opposition. All means, all laws and all organizing proper party works are monitored, followed and if you misstep you get arrested. While the NRM can do whatever it will. This is not something Mwenda touches, because that destroys the Saint Museveni, as he sees him these days.
“Uganda’s opposition is deluded. They believe they occupy such a superior moral ground, that they are so awesome and cool, their position is so self-evidently righteous; so they do not need to win over people. They believe everyone should support them as of right because they are “liberators.” They believe, and I think correctly, that most Ugandans are frustrated with Museveni and his NRM. However, they mistake this to mean most Ugandans love them” (Andrew Mwenda, 30.09.2019).
If the NRM is so loved and Museveni has such an popularity. Why does he need the army to make every single by-election looking like a war-zone? If his so loved, why does his RDCs order the radios from blocking opposition from being on-air? Why if the NRM is such a popular party, why does it give monetary and things to the voters to get votes? If the NRM is so popular, why does it has to detain the People Power coordinators and other opposition activist ahead and in the final days of the polls?
Why, Mr. Mwenda, why isn’t this mentioned? That because, that breaks the ideal of this so-called popularity. Also, why no mention of the open bazaar of pre-ticked ballots into the By-Election that the NRM “won”.
If his so loved, why does he have to pay the citizens and voters to get their vote? That doesn’t make sense to me. But neither does saying corruption and counting cars in the streets say anything about the growth potential in the Republic. However, you believed in this and now you writing such things like this.
Mwenda is a lost soul, but we know why. His free-thinking days are gone. His blind-sided and we has to expect that. He will defend murder for the case of the NRM. He will defend theft and thieving for the case of the NRM. He will defend election rigging for the case of the NRM. No matter what the NRM does, it is better than anyone else. Because, Mwenda cannot have his place or prestige without the NRM. His bound by the fate of the NRM.
The yellow has to pump in his veins, if not his ability to have a proper meal ticket goes away. That is why he cannot strike against the NRM. Peace.