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I wish to respond to a rather disappointing explanation offered by Mr Frank Tumwebaze, the Special Presidential Assistant in Charge of Research and Information. While responding to what he called �deliberate distortions� contained in Maj. Gen. Mugisha Muntu�s and Asuman Basiki�s interview in the Sunday Vision of October 31st. (See: What did Museveni deviate from? The Monitor. November 7th).
On the President�s deviation from the original team spirit and comradeship, Frank says that Mr. Museveni has followed the original principles, which has ably guided the Movement for the last 18 years, kept its �leadership focused, boosted its support massively and enabled it to triumph �. in every past elections�.
When the President himself was replying Mr. Bidandi�s resignation, acknowledges that in his absence things go in disarray. He wrote that �many MPs were pulled away from the Movement positions by the intri
guing spinners in Parliament taking advantage of my being busy with fighting Kony� Is this the focused top leadership where once the team leader is away for a few months, things cant run and all �supporters� and �members� are lost?
Frank knows that unlike in its initial years where the NRM was, like Andrew Mwenda has indicated, a �collective institution with a shared cause, it mobilised supporters on the basis of ideals and never used the current crude purchases of political supporters�, today this �support� has to be bought. Like Mwenda says, throughout the Constituency Assembly and the 6th Parliament, the NRM used to overcome the challenges it met through the shear force of political organisation and mobilisation around a shared cause or shared set of beliefs. Indeed Charles Onyango Obbo has indicated to us that Mr. Museveni�s average costs of financial inducements to bribe politicians (whom Frank calls supporters) has increased to 5000% over the last three years al
one! Is this the boosted massive support Frank?
How does Frank reconcile his view with Mr. Museveni�s acknowledgment that �using principles (10 points program, Movement vision, for instance) and elucidation�this is how we developed our cardership that moved mountains�. We all know that then, the likes of Maj. Mugisha Muntu, the Kategayas, the Bidandis, the Winnie Byanyimas, the Besigyes, Rukikayires et al, would just share the NRM cause, values and ideals with the people and the people would give their unconditional support � with no inducement. Let Frank compare this with the current NRM chief mobiliser Hon. Mike Mukula�s statement that �our pockets are deep and we shall give out money than ever before�. (See: NRM pockets deep � Mukula. The Monitor. November 6th). Isn�t this what the Bidandis and Muntus are telling Mr. Museveni that he is now fronting money to garner �support�?
About liberating Ugandans, defending them and their property at all times and ena
bling them to fully participate in deciding their own affairs. Ugandans would want Frank to explain this in respect to the Northern and North Eastern region of Uganda that has witnessed destruction of life and property for the entire life of the NRM government. And as this has been happening, we have seen the UPDF to which the President is the chief, purchasing malfunctioning helicopters, rotten foods for the army, baby size uniforms, ghost soldiering etc!
We may remember that just up to a few days ago when Maj. Gen. Muntu went to a church function in Luwereo, and as it has been all the time, the army and indeed armed police has been used to intimidate and brutalise Ugandans to stop them from listening to divergent views so as to make informed decisions on national issues. How does Frank explain apparent refusal to have FDC registered as per the PPA law?
Frank talks about creating �alternative power centres����and allowing them to conduct independent programs�. How does he explain the continual but uncalled for and unconstitutional interference by the president in the work of the IGG and of recent, Parliament and Judiciary? Does Frank remember that during his initial years in the chair, President Museveni used to call his Ministers, on spot, to explain their failures in delivery of services to the people upon peoples complaints, but don�t we have him being the
most outstanding defender and protector of corrupt ministers and other officers accused of or suspected to be corrupt or abusing public offices? How about deliberately involving the Permanent Secretaries and other high level civil servants in partisan politics in contravention of the public service standing orders and other laws?
Talking about the Ten Point Program acting as the guiding manifesto of NRM and that is has been �effectively implemented�. How far have we moved towards achieving �an integrated, self sustaining self regulating economy..� we were promised when over 60% of our budget is picked by donors?
On building institutions, Frank lists Youth Councils, Women Councils, and affirmative action. We should be talking about an independent IGG to fight graft, a non-partisan National Army which is not feared to die off in case the legendary historical fighters were not seating on the High Command; a strong and independent Investment Authority and formidable Chamber of commerce and Industry, that work on attracting, screening and appraising potential investors but not where the President has to personally appraise them as his investors. How independent is our legislature amidst this day light bribery wherever the MPs are poised to discuss issues or, the judiciary wherever they have a case at their hands, where the president has personal interests?
The President�s �strong ideas� shaping institutions. No body denies that Mr. Museveni advances strong and good ideas, but he should allow them to be discussed in a civi
lised manner but not pushing them down the throats of Ugandans. Frank says that Mr. Museveni, like all good leaders, creates good systems and builds long lasting institutions unlike the likes of Mussolinis and Hitler who stifle growth of these systems. Has Frank read the proposals in the White Paper on the presidency wherein Mr. Museveni wants to usurp all the powers of Parliament, Judiciary and indeed all Ugandans?
There are unhappy NRM members but who can�t speak out. It is evident that Frank hardly understands group dynamics and behaviour. He would have known that as the team leader starts advancing personal as against group interests and goals, we get teams within a team developing. Some members, like the Bidandis will speak out and risk being humiliated through discussing their persons and not their areas of dissent; some will abandon the team like the Muntus, Kategayas, Besigyes et al, while others � usually the majority, will keep mum but internally unsatisfie
d with the events.
In the NRM, many fear being victimised like it happened to Col. Besigye and Maj. Rwabwomi, some fear being sacrificed; others fear loss of �identity� with the ruling regime with its attendant goodies while others fear for their lives and that of their dear ones. Others fear to rock the boat and will want to do whatever it takes to appease the team leader least he destabilises the establishment - Uganda. i.e. the �if- the- man �wants- the- 3rd term,- what- can- you- do� that Gen. Muntu talked about.
Lastly, Frank butchers the notion of realism, he describes Dr. Besigye as a �power hungry realist.�
We all know that realists are those persons whose social, political, economical etc. ideas are based on realism i.e., on the determination to face facts and deal with them practically, without being influenced by feelings or false ideas, - for them, they show things as they are.
In conclusion, Frank does not have to agree with the views o
f persons who were close to , and agreed with Mr. Museveni on everything when Frank was still a very young boy, but as a Special Assistant to the President in charge of Research and information, he should do research in the real scientific meaning of the function and feed the nation on verified information. We expect a lot more than that pedestrian refute of otherwise empirically verifiable facts presented by Maj. Gen. Muntu et al.
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