When did it become okay? That the Politicians of our time are richer than businessmen!

“There is no art which one government sooner learns of another than that of draining money from the pockets of the people.” – Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations

Something is wrong in our day and age. When the Members of Parliament, the politicians and the appointed leadership are richer, than ever before. When the politicians and the ones representing us are richer than the ones building factories and owning businesses. That is just wrong, that is not right. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

The Members of Parliament, the politicians, the councilors and the local government officials wasn’t supposed to be the kingpins and have the biggest mansions. They are supposed to represent us and make sure that society are working for all of us. Maybe with different ideology and party affiliation, but their existence and their livelihood depend on the idea, that they are representing us. The politicians are supposed to be there for us and be there as guards. And if we don’t like they way they are guarding our society, we change them with someone else in the next election. That is how it is supposed to be, right?

However, that is not the case in our day. To many places they are honorable, they are noble, they have more businesses than businessmen, they have more investment too. They are using their connections for government tenders and also trading with State Owned Enterprises (SOE). All of this so they can sponge off the state and secure even more profits on the dime of the citizens. Instead of delivering and representing, they are become traders of faith and billing society too.

That wasn’t the intention. It wasn’t supposed to be rigged elections and fixed results. That makes sense for the leadership not representing the people or delivering. Since they don’t have to, it is just a charade securing the leadership “legitimacy” with an election, but the people didn’t elect them. That was ghosts, bots and algorithms. They have no interests in caring or delivering. Neither has the ones who used a coup to gain power. They fought there for their own will, not depending on the goodwill and trust of the public.

There are so many leaders and MPs, so many parliamentarians who seems more preoccupied with their SUVs, Mansions, Salaries and expense accounts. That they are not considering the troubles of the working people, about the pensioners and the ones unemployed. They are just happy go lucky, that the fortune hit them. The poverty, the lacking services and the misuse of power doesn’t mind them. These people could make it on their own, that is why they are unfortunate. Not that it’s the MPs, the Presidents or the representatives who didn’t see who they represent.

When we forget that they are representing us, they are representing the ideas of our society and the will of change that is needed. There is always need for change and need for productivity. There is always need for service delivery and making sure the government are accountable. However, when the representative is more keen on their own pockets and getting connections to enrich themselves. Then they loose their meaning and their purpose. They are then marionettes for the elites and the corporations. The politicians becomes stooges and relics instead of the representing the people of their constituency.

This has to change, we have to change this, we cannot accept that the MPs, the politicians are taking us for granted and using us for their own gain. They are there to serve, unless they don’t change. We have to serve them, we have to demonstrate and boycott their well-wishers. We cannot just look at these leaders of ours and be happy with it.

If they wont represent us, then we have to get fresh blood. Get people who actually care and give a damn. Because the ones in our time are greedy, selfish loot of people, who needs to recognized and be dealt with, before we are dealt with and we will be left behind. Peace.

Opinion: Prophet Mbonye are seeking wealth, not building a true church!

“Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless” – Ecclesiastes 5:10, (New International Version, NIV)

The Prophet Elvis Mbonye, the former bachelor of Development Studies at Makerere University. Who is now the grand prophet who surely knows deep into this mind that a Norwegian should write about his wealth and monies. Since, the prophet clearly cares more about wealth, than about the message. He sells audios and for 10k Uganda Shillings. So it not like his web-page is filled with the spirit of the lord, more like PR campaign for a snake-oil. Speaking of God, but claiming the prophet was able to foresee any world-event. Take a look!

“According to the recordings from that fellowship, Mbonye said then: “A time comes when you have got to realise that God is here. And you know how you can be sure about that [he starts glowing at this point]? It is because I am not my own. There comes a time after the glory of God has increased [the stage gets whiter] … ” He ended the sermon by saying: “What is happening here is God in demonstration,” and quotes Acts 5:14-16. For the August 23 fellowship, Mbonye finished preaching at 8:57pm by calling out all those called Bruno. Three gentlemen showed up and he correctly told them the exact months and dates on which they were born, before sending the crowd into praise and worship songs. When most of the people had left the venue, I realised that organising this fellowship was more than just attendance and preaching. At Serena, I put my observations forward. “The whole setting of the venue you saw that day costs us over Shs 54 million every Tuesday,” says the 39-year-old prophet. “We hire the Fotogenix tent alone at over Shs 20m, the public address system and live coverage is about Shs 15m and the hotel charges us over Shs 10m. It is by God’s grace that we manage””(Nangonzi, 2016)

“The last time we checked on Kampala’s self-styled pastor on the block, Prophet Elvis Mbonye, it was report how he had shopped a posh Range Rover valued at Shs650m. The upcoming pastor who pulls crowds that double what Pastor Robert Kayanja could even dare dream of, seems to have it all; talks good, dresses smartly, rides BMWs or Range Rovers of 2016 model, and performs miracles” (…) “The tickers for the gala dinner will cost Shs1m platinum; Shs750,000 gold; Shs500,000 silver and Shs300,000 bronze. The phone numbers are available for those who want to make special reservations. “The people that matter, meet here,” Mbonye is fond of saying. Go to Kololo Independence grounds on September 1, 2017 and witness for yourself” (Edge, 2017)

As this are showing is just more money. Money, money and money, this is not why Jesus Christ died for something as simple money. That he is seeking own personal wealth and glory. When his own web-page has poll on the most believable prophecy: “Which prophecy is the most remarkable to you?”, which continues: “1^st Authentic Prophecy!!!, 2^nd Brexit Prophecy Fulfillment!!!, 3^rd DP Split Fulfilled, 4^th Remarkable Prophetic Fulfillment!!! and 5^th South Africa Xenophobia Prophecy”. Check his web-page, it is all there: www.prophetelvis.com. He doesn’t even hide is own swagger and belief in his powers.

This is all a PR scoop, a ploy to eat on narrow-minded people’s belief. In Mark 11.15-17: “15 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’[c]? But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’[d]” (Mark 11, New International Version NIV).

Clearly, Elvis Mbonye has made his temple for merchandise and not faith, not for prayers. It is a giant shopping mall of empty handed gestures in the spirit of the Lord, but not of faith. The salvation and the mercy, the prophet is eating of the hands of believers to gain his own wealth. As they can nearly afford their own food and drinks, while he drive luxurious cars and surely has mansion somewhere. The pledges and drives to get in money seems more like the thing. His web-page verifies that, as even authors pages has more stories on their books and believes, than the preacher or prophet Mbonye has. It is shell of church and is trading the fate in his capacity over the truth of the gospel he is preaching.

I write this piece because the Prophet started to block People on twitter, after he is now getting paid for having people close to his chair at meetings and getting believers to kiss his expensive sneakers. Clearly, the man a is fraud, who is more about the money, than about salvation and bringing hope from despair. It is amazing that people pay this man and eats of his ego. This is robbing people and doing it with the mercy of the gospel.

I will end with another passage of bible that is fitting from 2. Peter Chapter 2, 1-4: “But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3 In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping” (New International Version, NIV).

As Prophet Mbonye, claims he has visions of any single event transpiring on planet earth. Rest assure, his riches and fandom will vanish. As the quest for Bentley’s and Mansions will eat his heart and soul. Since it is not for the betterment of the soul or salvation from sin, but for creating himself a business on the naive and people who just needs a figment of hope. This sort of false prophets, the sort of teachers that promises gold, but ask for fortunes themselves. If he would make his congregation wealthy, he wouldn’t ask for millions of shillings in pledges. He would make sure the church knew how to make it themselves. Alas, that is not the case. He has made the church into a self-pleasing mall, a self-adorable stage, where he basks in glory and not in the divine spirit of the Lord.

It is a shame, that people follows the man and pays the man. That they put faith in the man and follows his words, believe them and eat it up like gold. But it might look shiny, but it is fake. The prophet knows this and the world should know to. I hope he prophesied about my writing ill about him, but the scripture and text of the bible is compelling. As it set the standard of the teachers and the leaders of our church. Prophet Mbonye is more into money, than faith. That is fact, mere fact and the Ecclesiastes 5:10 should be a warning, but it doesn’t seem so. Peace.

Reference:

Edge – ‘Prophet Mbonye asks flock Shs1m to sit on ‘holy chairs’ (08.08.2017) link: http://edge.ug/2017/08/08/prophet-mbonye-asks-flock-shs1m-to-sit-on-holy-chairs/

Nangonzi, Yudaya – ‘Uganda: Elvis Mbonye Talks About His Life As a Modern-Day Prophet’ (15.09.2016) link: http://allafrica.com/stories/201609160049.html

Andrew Mwenda’s flawed logic; He claims that Mzee is not the problem with Uganda; I beg to differ

Andrew Mwenda keeps with his flawed logic. Like he has lost the plot and forgotten his traits and his theories of old. But hey, he is hungry and wants to eat. Here is has ploy of arrogance on facebook:

“It is simplistic to argue that Uganda’s problem is Museveni. A better argument is Museveni has failed to solve the problems of Uganda” (…)”Museveni (with Besigye) once told us that getting rid of Obote would be a major step in improving anything. What happened?” (…)”Besigye’s weakness is to personalize Uganda’s problems to Museveni and argue that his removal is all we need. The problems of poverty, weak state, poor Government services and democracy deficit were there before Museveni” (…)“If we fail to diagnose Uganda’s problems, the solutions will always elude us” (Andrew Mwenda, 17.01.2016)

Well, in sum there has gone 29 years of the one-man rule since 1986. There have been many benefactors and Members of Parliament since them, but the main factor in the calculations have been President Museveni. Since he took rule he has marginalized or used tactics to get people loyal to Museveni and not directly to any state institution. Therefore he is a major problem, because if it didn’t really happen, then he didn’t sponsor the benedictional project or program. Museveni could only support a program if he could benefit from it.

That Mwenda has a problem with Besigye is that he is in stark contrast to Museveni. Besigye asks for accountability and transparency something that doesn’t fit the world of development and growth for the editor and creator of the Independent Magazine. Something that is weird considering his past at KFM Radio and trouble for blasting governmental cronyism.

It is true that Museveni isn’t the only problem, but he is the one that creates the problem and feeds the issues, instead of fixing them. He doesn’t mend or complement them. Instead he adds on the weight until he overpowers it; because he has to do what he can rule and control it. Therefore he is the problem, as he is the executive power and the man who has had the majority rule or even rigged himself the majority. So Mwenda must have forgotten that part of the issue, if not he is blind by his own ego.

It is true that all the issues that Mwenda mentioned in the government of Uganda as the bad governance, weak state-institutions and democratic deficit. This was inherited in 1986 from the Obote II and the short-term presidents in between like Yusuf Lule and Tito Okello. So there aren’t all Museveni faults, but he has had the time to fix many of the issues and defects in the governmental structures and democratic facilitation if he really cared about them. It is not like he was sitting for a hot minute and didn’t have the time to fix the corruption of UNRA, NSSF and other state-organizations.

When you see excellent record of higher and higher loan-rate on the government budget for any year, when the value of the currency falls and escalating inflations you can wonder if the government and economical institutions under the regime is for the people or the rich elite who is fed by the government. The Neo-Liberalization of Uganda has lead the government to expand the businesses into every part of society instead of governmental control as the Chicago School of Business wanted in 1970s, with the IMF and World Bank controlled Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP) that demolished state-financed agricultural and subsidized industries that was supposed to be controlled by market-powers instead of supported by tax-money to sustain growth and higher employment rate. The result of inflicting this on the Ugandan economy as the NRM-Regime has done with such a passion is that the business that has no cut for the government has been left astray and the ones that is not strong enough has gone bankrupt. Now Uganda has to imports of finished products and stop of productions from industry and factories in former towns like Jinja. Also with the historical institution of the Uganda Development Corporations, who from the 1950s gave growth through state-funds, and not through direct market power!

That must have been forgotten by the Andrew Mwenda, that President Museveni sold everything to foreigners or liberated the economy to point that the URA can’t tax, or control to tax without losing the control over the sold merchandise. That is why Uganda has one of the lowest rates of taxation on products since the URA doesn’t have the manpower or the regulations to without taxes. They can’t keep up with citizens and movement of money, if they had then they might catch up with more of the embezzlement and corrupted agreements between liberated companies or new structures in the market own by the ruling elite. But that is not good is it? Send cases to the DPP and OAG to fix the matters together with Uganda Anti-Corruption Commission which is so meager that they can’t keep the state of affairs and make government institution accountable, something that President Museveni doesn’t really want them to do, unless he want to get rid of somebody who has the dream of succeeding him. Then they will find something on the man or woman show some of the dirty laundry.

You don’t need to be giant man with much knowledge to diagnose some of the issues that the government of Uganda has to tackle, some the state of affairs and some tangible structures that need to be fixed. The government needs taxation with representation, also need to re-focus the money and also be more accountable for their actions. Not have a one-big-man rule as they have had since 1986 that keeps to eating of the plate, instead of serving the people. That is a problem: a problem that knows that he is the problem, if he stills remember what he studied in the end of 1960s and beginning of 1970 at the University of Dar-Es-Salam in Tanzania. President Museveni should know the issues and know how he made them, or prepared them through his loyal cronies. As Andrew Mwenda seems more like one of his mouth-pieces more as the time goes, instead of pseudo-intellectual as he wishes to portray himself.

This is a direct address to the issue, as he can try to clean his slate, but he has lost the plot. The problem and the real man behind it is President Museveni is only leader and nearly the only one who has been there from the get-go and have ruled so long that he know what has been done differently than under his wings. The reign will not be remembered as the ones who follow the dream story of liberation, but also of eating the riches and wealth while forgetting to feed the public, or let the get opportunity to eat and earn a living.

So Mwenda has a flawed view on the matter, that he at the same time says Besigye is wrong. Besigye has also said that the institutions need accountability and transparency which is starch contrast to Museveni. Something that is vital to rebuild them and prove that the government institutions are for the people and not the Executive to eat of. So if that have to change then the public funds and public expenditure together with strengthen them, not in ownership of the executive but by giving the civil servants power to execute the necessary flows of technical assistance or regulations to let the teachers, policemen, judges and bureaucrats to do their initial service to the public; now they are handpicked men to serve the executive. That is problem because the paycheck from the executive is more important than doing their job to the public who need the men to secure their daily life and be there to safely govern the territories of the state.

As we can see Mwenda has judged the matter very easy without thinking it through, if he has then his logic is very flawed as President Museveni is a problem in state clogged with issues and the problems. There isn’t a way solution to it all, how to fix the economy is there many theories, though the stability of the currency and inflation should be the first, also secure low loans-rate so that the growth can be similar to the inflation rate. There is also the level of building trust between government institutions and people as they are supposed to be connected and for each other. Not letting the state and its institutions being on an island, and when they need the public hire a ferry to let the visit. That is not the idea of the state, the state is supposed to be mirrored in the people with transparency and accountability where the public can question the behavior of the rulers, governors and mayors, as they are set to represent the public, not just execute the laws and regulations without mercy, then the government is an totalitarian state, where justice will not prevail unless you are on good term with the head or executive power on the top. That is how the system is now with government of Uganda. We can easily see that he is one of the major factors, why President Museveni is the elephant in the room when you discuss progress and development issues in the country, since he can decide where to go or who to hire to fix it.

That is it. Peace.