The history of Uganda is so distorted by the foreign media. The falsehood in our media (particularly todays Monitor) that Amin organized a genocide in Uganda is exactly that, a falsehood.
He never fought the Acholi and Langi for a single day. The people he fought were Obote loyalists whom the army had overthrown following a mutiny in Lubiri barracks on 23rd January 1971. The mutineering soldiers feared for their lives as Obote had set in motion a purge of all non Luo's in the army. That would then be followed by a purge in the police and the entire civil service. Remember that Obote had left orders for Amins head on a silver tray before leaving for CHOGM in Singapore (1971). Little did he know that he would only see Uganda 9 years later after Amin. Idi Amin was under house arrest at the time of the military uprising, and only came into the picture to restore order in all military barracks'. Something that he did by first visiting the mutineering soldiers on 24th January the following day after their first revolt. Those events, corroborated by several officers, show that they actually forced him to be the head of a military council. He hadn't planned any attacks with them. Amin himself confirmed this to Africa Report in 1975 during the OAU summit in Uganda when he told their British reporter that "I was forced to be president." The revolt only exposed the fact that loyalism to Obote was mainly by some Acholi and Lango. >From my modest research I found no single shred of historical evidence that Amin appointed himself president. Where is their evidence? When I say that Amin only fought Obote loyalists, the most glaring evidence is that many Luo's served in the army, police and civil service until 1979 when Amin left. Records at the Ministry of public service and Defence can attest to that. I can also confirm that the cooks and servants at State House between 1971 to 1979 were all Luo's. The Chief Cook was one Odiambo and the Head Servant called Odero. First class British trained caterers. But Luos. Amin never targeted anyone because of their tribe. So if the media says Amin committed genocide against the Acholi's, how then does anyone explain those who remained serving under Amin until 1979. How do they explain Amin eating food cooked by Luo's every day until 1979? Actually police and civil service remained predominantly Luo until recent incremental restructuring under the NRM. Does anyone remember in the late 90's President Museveni complaining about Obote loyalists in the police and civil service? Calling them saboteurs of government programs before forming the Sebutinde commission of inquiry into the Police Force? This was followed by appointing the now Army commander Gen. Katumba Wamala as Inspector General of Police. There is a worrying trend of our media depending on foreign news outlets to tell the contemporary history of our country, yet we Ugandans were there seeing the reality for ourselves. This creates a disconnect between what our media says is history and what the people know are lies. A quick poll on social media will show you that Amin is a Ugandan hero, often referred to as the most patriotic Ugandan. But our mainstream media seems to be perpetuating the same foreign agenda as if we were still in Britains Anti-Amin days. Yet the average grassroot Ugandan, the people our media is supposed to communicate to and hear from, speak so favorably about Idi Amin. His legacy has managed to survive decades of meticulous censorship at home and abroad. But Ugandans have been adamant in communicating it whether informally or directly including on social media these days. What our news papers fail to appreciate in regards to Idi Amin is very simple; Times have changed. Ugandans are more aware of the efforts he made to modernize the country. We also know the beauty of our cities and the well maintained roads, telecommunications and other infrastructure he built. How he did his best to put the economy of Uganda in the hands of Ugandans who until then were exploited and harrassed by expatriates. In contrast, we also know how all government assets were completely mismanaged, looted, destroyed and sold AFTER Amin. We also know that it was those calling themselves "liberators", who committed those criminal acts. Who can hide from Ugandans the constant wars since 1979, plus the hundreds of thousands of skeletons littering the countryside following their misrule and infighting? And most importantly which media is able to analyze that what they called "liberation", was merely a vehicle for a handful of exile leaders to get to Uganda then selfishly grab power for themselves and their fragmented clicks having used the Tanzanians as fools. A simple assessment can show that there was no genuine patriotism or concern for Ugandans in the so-called liberation. What they did to the country after Amin, clearly proves it. In fact, I recently argued that the word "liberator" is an insult to Ugandans. That is why Amin is now increasingly understood to be the most patriotic Ugandan. Someone who genuinely had the country at heart. And that is why the vast majority of ordinary Ugandans including many women and the swaggerific youth, truly love Idi Amin. Regards, Hussein Juruga Lumumba Amin Son of H.E, The late Former President Idi Amin Dada. Kampala, Uganda.
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