Opinion: Mao is a lesson of selling himself short…

Now we hear those who joined yesterday trying to lecture us ok how the opposition should act. Being in opposition means you are opposing certain ideas. We are professors in opposition as the Democratic Party. We have a PhD in Opposition, others are still in kindergarten” – Norbert Mao (22.11.2023).

One thing is certain and that’s something Minister Norbert Mao cannot run away from. He is a Minister in Government, which means his not in opposition anymore. The Democratic Party ceased to be that the moment it signed the “No Surprises” Agreement with the National Resistant Movement (NRM). That was a choice and a decision made, which makes Mao and his Party in-line with the Government. They have to vote with them and follow the stipulations of the set agreement.

This is why Mao is now compromised and sold out. He gave way and has become one of them. Mao isn’t the first DP leader or MP to do so. No, there been people before him who did join the government and later they even became NRM themselves. They just saw the benefits of being it directly, instead of working from the outside looking in.

Mao hasn’t been in Opposition since he signed that agreement. He has years as an opposition candidate and as an opposition party. I can give him that and the DP Party has a long history of such. I wouldn’t deny it that, but his still not the guy to lecture others.

His reign and campaigns as opposition in 2011 and 2016 shows how he failed. Mao haven’t been capable or able to take the party further. Neither has there been any sort of successful momentum to give him a shot of getting close to the Presidency. No, his been a small time player in a sea of sharks who smells his blood.

Chairman Mao should know better, as his always tried to act wise and be an intellectual. However, his choices politically can be questioned and the results can be deemed thereafter. His not a serial winner or an overachiever. Mao has done the bare minimum and just gotten what he needs to get by. The DP Party won’t be stronger or more resilient the moment he leaves. No, it will be in shambles and most likely an infighting between the ones who are a part of NRM and the ones who defied that agreement. That agreement is bound to create more headache and hurt for the party. Not make it better or more functional.

That’s why Mao shouldn’t lecture others on how to play. He showed that he was such a mess that he lost out a chance to be on the ballot in 2016 and he had to vouch for Amama Mbabazi. That’s the sort of man he is and he has called Besigye a “serial loser” which is rich when you know how Mao has struggled in the polls.

Mao should just rest on the laurels and enjoy the perks of office. He has traded his integrity and moral high-ground for a brief moment of riches. Right not it’s all funky dory and his one of them. However, the moment his not useful. He will be tossed aside quickly by His Excellency. If not get a useless office and at a government entity, which gives him no prominence whatsoever. That’s where Mao is heading and he doesn’t even know it. Peace.

Opinion: Mpuuga’s masterclass response to Speaker Among

Our absence from the House is official because it was officially communicated. It’s the duty of Parliament’s presiding officers to consider how to treat official communication. I earlier communicated of a meeting we had in the Speaker’s chambers during which the regime’s Ministers of Defence, Security and Inter Affairs undertook to make a comprehensive response to each of the issues we raised. They had a time frame 30 days which elapsed last Sunday on 19th November 2023. At no one time are we going to return to #PlenaryUg without our demands being responded to. All we are waiting for is the date and time the regime will be ready to respond. We received communication last week that they were unable to come with the statement because they had travelled out of the country for a security meeting. Do they want to tell us that when they travelled, did they flee into exile? Are they dead or were disappeared like #TheMissing18? Our demand of the Speaker is for to follow up on Parliament’s instructions to the Executive. We expect her to be neutral; an arbitor or referee whose duty is to demand that the Executive comes and answer. Other matters short of an answer are peripheral and we are not willing to be diverted into that” – Leader of Opposition Mathias Mpuuga (23.11.2023)

Yesterday it was a launch of threats in the Plenary Session against the Opposition Members of Parliament who is boycotting the August House at the moment. These MPs are not partaking or being within the chambers for Plenary Sessions. Neither of them has notified or asked for “leave of absence” which is why the Speaker is trying to use a power move and show strength for her cause.

However, Speaker Among forgets certain things too and that she has leverage yes, but not a good moral grandstander. She don’t have ground to walk on or be justified to retaliate. The Opposition MPs are the ones awaiting answers for the abducted, kidnapped, kept incommunicado, tortured and political prisoners or prisoners of conscience. These people needs to be addressed and their whereabouts, their charges and their bodies for that matter. Since no one has heard or seen them for ages. Therefore, there are unresolved matters, which is of no concern for the Speaker apparently.

The Speaker is just into power and wants to prove it. She wants to whip the MPs into Order and be the Leader of the House. Nevertheless, she forgets her role too and what she’s supposed to do. Alas, she might not have access or allow to pursuit the misgivings of the state, which is why they are making excuses instead of delivering what the Opposition is asking for.

It is easier to order a drone and the authorities on a person. Than to actually acknowledge the person or give the person its rights under the rule of law. That’s how it looks like in the Republic at the moment. The Speaker isn’t making things better either.

Issuing threats and taking away privileges. If that’s the answer… then she’s a sorry individual who doesn’t mind the plights and suffering of others. She is blind to the fact and the sorrow other people have. This is the gist of it.

LoP Mpuuga actually showed masterclass here. He is following procedure and being frank. Not just begging for room and a microphone to speak. The ones expect him to back-down and be compromised. Certainly didn’t get their day and we can wonder how the Speaker will react to this. Because this doesn’t fit her narrative and her shallow perception of things.

The Speaker is advised to listen now, but I doubt she ever will. That is water under the bridge. She isn’t that kind. The only one she would listen too, is the one that appointed her and gave the opportunity to become Speaker. Peace.

Opinion: The people of Karamoja have understood the value of PDM…

In some sections of the community, there is negative attitude towards PDM money as it is compared to other similar government poverty eradication programs which are generally perceived by some people as failures. Some people perceive the PDM as a thank you token from the President for voting him in power and others view it as Personal Pocket Money like I said in (Karenga) Karamoja, some people were reported to be referring to the money as Personal Drinking Money” – Ojara Mapenduzi, Chairperson Parliament’s Public Service Committee (22.11.2023)

We know the drill and we have been here before. Now the Karamoja sub-region and the population, which have been starving and been in conflict. The ones who are used and getting taken for granted. The population of Karamoja isn’t thriving and that’s a result of years of neglect or lack government services. They have been kept this way and for a purpose.

The Parish Development Model (PDM) like any micro-finance scheme the government has created are flawed from the onset and with lacking due diligence. The PDM was launched just in time for elections and making a continuation of the endless programs like these. The SACCOs, NAADs, Emyooga, OWC and whatnot. It is just an endless money-pit and programs destined to fail. The PDM is no difference. Another name of the same scheme, which happens to be re-branded and tweaked just a little bit to look different from the others. However, the core business is the same and in the end… it will amount to little to nothing.

Well, with that in mind. Here we are… and the Karamoja sub-region is speaking fact. They have seen it coming and they spell the rain on the horizon. The people know what the PDM means and why it exists. That it is a cash-grab made around elections and to ensure the regime votes. That’s why they make new ones and with additional “incentives” to sweeten the deal.

It is just amazing to know the PDM is seen as a pocket money and drinking money. That wasn’t the intention, but there been so much shady going on with the PDM money. So, who cares about a little fun around “happy hour” aye?

The PDM was destined to fail and just like the predecessors did too. The NRM did make amends or ensure it’s longevity. That doesn’t matter either, because they just launch another one before the next General Elections anyway. Before their been any serious reporting or oversight into the PDM as a whole.

There been reports that shows how the PDM has failed. These have been very direct and shown how the government have failed this one. There are just to much drive and very little protocol. Neither are there safety-nets or anything ensuring the usage either. This means the money will be spent on frivolous activities and who doesn’t mind a free beer.

I’m sure the Waragin O’Clock is hitting smoothly in Kotido or Moroto for that matter. They are just enjoying the buzz of the PDM. These people deserved the brew and the tingly feeling after all their hardships. When they can get functioning roads, schools or hospitals. At least a free drink and a nice evening is a small bargain. It doesn’t the patch the hurt, but it give momentary relief.

Alas, the mabaati thieves is discussing it, but not seeing the grander the picture. Just like the MPs and Ministers took from the state. The PDM was taken for granted too and they cannot be blamed for that. They are not seeing a concerning government or a service delivery. Instead they are pawns and now they used their peasant power for their own legendary night(s). Peace.

Opinion: Speaker Among can invoke rule 112 but it doesn’t make it more honest…

Whereas we are cognizant that some MPs are absent from the House, I am yet to receive individual letters, asking for permission to be out of the house. It is strict liability not to be courteous. We take personal liability, we were voted individually not as a team, so I am yet to receive from persons who are absent from the House” – Speaker Anita Among (22.11.2023).

The truth of the matter is this… the request and the ideals of Speaker Among isn’t sincere. These Parliamentary Rules and Rule Book for the 11th Parliament have been strictly used against the Opposition and certain Members of Parliament, because of their stature within the Opposition. The same rules seems to be forgotten and not exist or be honoured if an MP from the National Resistance Movement (NRM) was doing it.

Yes, in theory and practice, the boycotting Members of Parliament should seek the approval of the Speaker for “Leave of Absence”. However, we all know how that will go and how useless that is. She will use the book as a brick and throw it in their faces. The Speaker will humiliate them and bow to her honour. That’s what she does and how she rules the House.

This is why the Opposition MPs who are defying and boycotting the plenary sessions are doing so out of spite, but also out of a necessary evil. There is no other way out. We have seen how the games are played. The government isn’t being held accountable and the pleas for getting information or reports on the matters are disregarded. They are even mocked and being downplayed like it isn’t concerning even.

Speaker Among and Minister’s has played along to this. The NRM MPs and the 11th Parliament don’t mind the Human Rights Violations, the Prisoners of Conscience or ones abducted to unknown locations by the state. The August House doesn’t take this into consideration or even shows them a little a bit hope. No, there is nothing and no tears lost. Only more braggadocios behaviour and acts of mischief. As the opposition is whacked on their heads and have to bow down to rules of house.

This is why the boycott in itself won’t do much either. The NRM won’t change. The government and the authorities have been doing this for years now. They intend to extend its reign and will not cease the activities of the security organizations. The drones will continue and the agony will be felt on more civilians. The citizens who dares to become a part and be vocal supporters of the opposition. Those are the ones that could face the law, if not face the authorities and the shady side of politics. They could lose their freedom, their liberty and their rights to live normal life. As they await a long journey in dungeons, in awaiting prolonged periods before trial and even being court martialed as civilians. That’s what this government does and it doesn’t want the whole truth exposed.

That’s why the Speaker retaliates and makes threats. She has the rules of parliament to her disposal and can whip it. The usage of perks and others things can stifle some. Regardless of that, the cause they are fighting is for people who are suffering. The ones who stood up and is paying the price. They dared to challenge this regime and now they are living in an uncertain future. That’s why they boycotting the proceedings.

The Speaker should understand those sentiments. She should see and her the stories, but it’s hard to believe that. When you have a mansion and live a “glamorous life”. The MPs fights a just cause, but don’t expect any sympathy from the Speaker. She don’t care and only values her own power. Right now she’s at the top and she wants to prove it to her master that she was the right choice. Peace.

Opinion: Are the leaders of FDC working on overtime to become irrelevant?

It’s been a long

A long time comin’, but I know

A change gon’ come

Oh, yes it will” – Sam Cooke ‘A Change Gonna Come’ (December 1964).

The Party of Defiance is Dead. Let us all joy in awe and celebration. Eat the Nsene and get some sodas. If not go to the hot-spots and buy some Rollex. We need to celebrate, because the Party of Defiance has become the Party of Compliance. Let’s celebrate on this joyous occasion.

It is time to marvel in the fact of a loss. The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) isn’t what it was or what it intended to be. That’s why we are here and we predicted it’s death. The demise and fatal choice of ceasing relations with FDC Katonga was the nail in the coffin. As the flag-bearers and the ones in high ranking officials disembarked from the struggle, which defined the Party for decades. They even dismissed and disregarded Besigye and his allies at any point of time.

Therefore the recent week of revealing why the FDC MPs shows up the plenary sessions in Parliament comes to no surprise… just read this brief stories and you see…

FDC party president Patrick Amuriat Oboi has defended the decision of party legislators to attend plenary despite an ongoing boycott by other parties. According to POA, NUP didn’t consult him prior to announcing a walk out” (The Kampala Journal, 21.11.2023).

“We are not populist like NUP. We were voted to legislate for our people. We are not under any pressure to remain in the office of Leader of Opposition,” Nandala Mafabi on why FDC Najjanankumbi shunned Opposition plenary boycott” (The Kampala Journal, 15.11.2023).

The barefoot messiah and his comrades will walk without the courage or the boldness of others. They have signed off on that and showing the signs of being the “Good FDC”. Just like it was “Good DP” and “Bad DP” in the eyes of the President. Surely, this FDC is compromised and feels obligated to show up. They have made a deal and now they have to comply. That’s why they disregard the NUP and such too.

The FDC we are seeing today isn’t the ones that got supporters, created a storm and was a troublemaker for the regime. This one can easily be accessed and ascertained. There is nothing to retain here and nothing of value. Their currency and their actions speaks for themselves.

The FDC of Amuriat and Mafabi is a shell of what it was. These one cannot be genuine or sincere. They have lost that and now they have to act it all out. The FDC with them will loose and become irrelevant. That’s sad to say, but with time this will all wither. We will have the stories and the former glory of the powerhouse, which used to be the FDC. However, in 2023 and beyond… it will be a relic and lost for time.

That’s because of the choices of the leadership. Their greed and short-sighted politics. They are destined to see it all fall apart and they danced on the grave of the party. That’s what they did and this is the result. Peace.

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Opinion: Mr. President, it’s your policies from the 1990s that made Busoga poor…

I have been peeping through my car window as I travelled here for this function and I have kept wondering to myself how do these people (in Busoga sub region) live through this sort of poverty? I have screened through all these villages where I have passed but the houses and all the other things I have seen have left me wondering how it’s possible for our people [in Busoga] to survive through these hard economic conditions”– President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (18.11.2023).

We are living in 2023 and the generations that saw the implementation of the Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) are old, bitter or forgotten about. They saw the implications and the costs of doing so. The privatization and liberalization of the economy, which was the stipulations of the Bretton Woods Organizations and getting loans in the 1990s. This was at a time when President Museveni himself was a “new breed” of leadership and even a President that Bill Clinton spoke kindly of.

However, those days are gone, decades later and the grim realities of the effects of those policies are now coming to haunt the government. Industries and the industrial hub of Jinja city died as a cause of this. State owned and operated Cooperatives ceased to exist, sold or just dissolved. The ones thriving industries was sold for scraps and are now a jaded memory. While it was decades one of the points and cities that pumped foreign currency and created wealth.

The National Resistance Movement (NRM) and President Museveni earned fortunes on the loans, grants and the SAPs. They got favours and favourable terms for the central government, but the businesses, state owned enterprises or cooperatives had to adjust to new terms. Which inflicted harm and damage, which have never been able to heal.

That why this was reported earlier in the year:

According to the Busoga Development Agenda (BDA), Busoga’s economic collapse is partly a result of the collapse of Jinja’s industrial prowess due to the 1994 privatization policy and weakening of the cooperative movement in Busoga, a disunited political leadership and cultural leadership differences that destabilized the role of the Kyabazingahood as a rallying point for the unity of Busoga after the demise of the late His Royal Highness Henry Wako Muloki” (Busoga Today – ‘Development and Economic Empowerment’, 22.07.2023).

If you ever wonder how the process and the sales was done by the National Resistance Movement (NRM). Well, it is done like it has always been done. It has been done with favours and within own ranks, the NRM Way. The way of the President and his inner-circle. They are getting bargains and good deals or a trade for loyalty. That’s what Museveni does and he can sell of anything, if it benefits him and his time in office. He don’t care if a hotel goes bust or gets sold for scraps. Museveni don’t mind if a factory or a cooperative gets locked in and gets worse ownership. No, he sold something and return he got a loyal crony. That’s the business model and that how you destroy industries and production.

Just read this one here from an Academic Paper in 2011:

During the privatization process at least seven (9%) out of 74 SOEs were undervalued and sold to government employees costing government Shs. 4.3 billion (US$2.2) (over US$2,152,000 at US$=Shs.2, 000).xxxvi Undervaluation (AV>SP) was calculated as the excess of asset value (AV) over the sales price (SP). The undervaluation was explained by politics and weak private sector. First, the ruling party supporters included cabinet ministers, presidential advisers, National Resistance Movement (NRM) supporters and Members of Parliament (MPs). In order to marshal political support, the ruling NRM either undervalued or condoned default” (…) “Second, undervaluation was expected even before sale if the locals were to buy SOEs. What was not expected, however, was the preferred sale of the SOEs to NRM cadres and family members of President Museveni. Before sale, it was realized that the locals would not be able to buy all assets offered for privatization. Total SOE assets exceeded all the amount of money in the Ugandan Banks. While total SOEs assets were valued at Shs. US$ 1 m (Shs. 200 billion), the entire money supply was just shs. 50 billion and bank deposits stood at shs. 46 billion end of January 1989” (David Kibikyo – ‘Fiscal impact of privatization in Uganda 1992-2007’ July 2011, African Journal of Political Science and International Relations Vol. 5(7), pp. 371-387).

So, when the NRM comes to town and Busoga and says “vote for NRM we bring development”. Well, in regards to the Busoga sub-region. The NRM has brought the opposite. The President and his policies from the 1990s and early 1980s are the destructive means, which destroyed the industries of Jinja. That’s a fact and the sale of SOEs didn’t benefit the sub-region either. It was a drive to keep the inner-circle happy and the enrich his family. That’s what the gist of the privatization, which hurt Busoga and other owned state owned enterprises across the Republic.

The President can act like a visitor and as a stranger to Busoga in 2023. However, it is his will and his choices that put them there. He decided to take the International Monetary Funds (IMF) and World Bank (WB) funds that entailed the SAPs. The President didn’t mind the implications and complied, as he saw positive outcomes… profits internally and externally become beloved. Because, he followed “Washington Consensus” and traded the future of the nation for a few silver coins. That’s what he did and now his blaming the Busoga in part for their poverty. When he can be blamed and should carry a heavy burden for doing so. Peace.

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