I am going to take on three or so points here
1} When he confiscated Bugandas land and assets and abolished Kingdoms in
Uganda in 1967, it looked like that was the end of the ancient Kingdom.
Apollo Makubuya needs to realize that actually Obote and Uganda government
never confisicated Buganda land and assets, Mengo was ran on a one man plan
from get go, and it was built as any true oligarchy as they all are built.
Mengo was Ssabassajja Mutesa and at his exit there was no system built in
Mengo to run the institution without him. They became eyesores and many that
were left out by Uganda government simply dilapidated. There was no system
in the Uganda government at time to round up all these properties to take
them. What I have ben lamenting about all these days is to ask Mengo to work
out a system where Mengo can run independent of Kabaka, and that is a very
complex hurdle that Ssalongo Ssenoga can simply not fathom for The Kingdom
was built to run only as a one man show. That is what we faced in 1966 and
that is what we will face after Museveni shuts down this Kingdom. Never ever
delude yourself that Museveni only owns authority to reinstate it.
2} . However, and as every one knows, Prince Ronald Mutebi, as he was then,
was involved in mobilizing people in the war zones in Buganda to support the
NRA.
Omuhongo Abbey Ssemuwemba, and just how many times have I been attacked for
stating that Ssabassajja was in Luwero and among those blowing up Ugandans?
Did I write that sentence? No Apollo Makubuya did sir. And yes I told you,
Ssabassajja Mutebi is a killer and when you send Museveni Besigye Muntonyera
Tinyefunza and Kazini into Hague, save him a God damn seat on the flight.
3} Bugandas demands for self-determination and agreement on devolution of
power and finances based on principles of federalism and not
decentralization.
Now that is the question that I have asked in the forum. How can you hand a
self determination to a region to hold power and finances based on
principles of Federalism and not decentralization when that region does not
have an elected and representative authority? Is there any administration
anywhere in 2013 that gets power and fiancés of the people and hand them to
people for they were born in a certain bed sheet and not this one? That is
the nightmere that many fear to go into. And lastly it is very interesting
that Apollo Makubuya is making all demands but he was very careful not to go
to the 1900 Buganda agreement. One can wonder why he carefully left it out?
Is it because that same agreement explains how Baganda themselves handed the
Buganda land and property to the central government? Because when you read
Makubuya s document he skip the entire 1900 Buganda agreement when is the
agreement that established where we are today.
Why abandon it when it is your document Makubuya?
EM
On the 49th
Thé Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni and Dr. Kiiza Besigye Uganda is in anarchy"
Kuungana Mulindwa Mawasiliano Kikundi
"Pamoja na Yoweri Museveni na Dk. Kiiza Besigye Uganda ni katika machafuko"
From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Hannah Ogwapiti
Sent: Sunday, August 04, 2013 3:00 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: {UAH} 20 years and beyond Is it sunset or sunrise for Buganda
Kingdom?
20 years and beyond Is it sunset or sunrise for Buganda Kingdom?
The sun seemed to set on the Kingdom of Buganda when Dr. Obote attacked the
Lubiri in 1966 and ripped apart the 1962 Independence Constitution. When he
confiscated Bugandas land and assets and abolished Kingdoms in Uganda in
1967, it looked like that was the end of the ancient Kingdom.
In the dark days that followed, it was inconceivable that the Kingdom would
ever resurrect. Dr. Obote and his ilk were determined to obliterate its
existence and history. To achieve this goal Dr. Obote pursued a republican
and communist agenda to demonize the Kingdoms and its supporters. He imposed
a long state of emergency in Buganda and detained and harassed anyone known
to support the Kabaka. He wickedly turned the Kabakas palace into an army
barracks and the Kingdoms seat in Bulange into his armys headquarters. He
callously renamed it Republic House. The new occupants at Bulange quickly
and mercilessly burned all the valuable artifacts and records that they
could find. By 1971, when Gen. Idi Amin toppled him, Obotes agenda against
Buganda was almost complete and there was a view within the UPC cabal that a
good Muganda was a dead one.
So when Gen. Amin overthrew Dr. Obote there was a cause of wild celebration
in Buganda. To many, this was a new dawn for the Kingdom. Those celebrating
must have missed the fact that Gen. Amin did not include the restoration of
Kingdoms in the 18 reasons he gave for ousting Dr. Obote. For his benefit,
Gen. Idi Amin used the euphoria to boost his popularity and within no time
he, who had personally led the attack of the Lubiri five years ago,
mysteriously raised Buganda hopes with the return of Ssekabakas body for
burial at Kasubi. With the stately burial ceremonies out of the way, the
Baganda elders were quick to present memoranda asking Gen. Amin to allow the
return of Prince Ronald Mutebi to Uganda and to restore his Kingdom. But, as
we now know, once Gen. Amin settled in his chair, the restoration of
Kingdoms in Buganda or elsewhere was the least of his concerns. And, like
Dr. Obote before him, he maintained the military occupation of the Kabakas
Palace at Mengo and Bugandas headquarters grotesquely turning them into
torture and murder chambers.
Bugandas fortunes didnt improve after Amin was overthrown in 1979. This is
because the successive regimes of Dr. Obote (in reincarnation) Lutwa,
Basilio Okello, Paulo Muwanga, Godfrey Binaisa and Prof. Yusuf Lule had
little or no time to ponder the restoration of Kingdoms in Uganda. It was
only when armed rebellion started against Dr. Obote that talk of the
restoration of Kingdoms took on a more serious turn. Guerrilla groups like
Uganda Freedom Movement (UFM) and Federal Democratic Movement of Uganda
(FEDEMU) led by Kayiira put the restoration of Buganda Kingdom on top of
their struggle. But, unlike the FEDEMU and the UFM, the NRA did not include
the restoration of Kingdoms in its ten-point programme. There is talk that
an agreement was struck in Kikunyu Makulubita in the Luwero bushes for the
restoration of the Kingdom however this remains unsubstantiated. In fact
President Museveni has vehemently denied the existence of such an agreement.
However, and as every one knows, Prince Ronald Mutebi, as he was then, was
involved in mobilizing people in the war zones in Buganda to support the
NRA.
The NRA/NRM won the war of liberation and promised the country a fundamental
change in 1986. However it took almost eight years once it captured power to
allow the restoration of traditional leadership in Uganda. Even then, it is
reported, there was stiff resistance by the army leadership in restoring the
Kabakaship. It is said that Gen. Museveni struggled and later prevailed over
his Junta to have the Kabakaship grudgingly restored in 1993. At that point,
many in Buganda saw the sun rising in the horizon. And when asked for views
on the new constitution, Buganda overwhelmingly demanded for the return of
the Kingdoms as well as the restoration of a federal system of Government.
However when the new Constitution was promulgated in 1995, Bugandas views
on federalism and restoration of the Kingdom, as it existed before the 1966
crisis, were discarded. Instead, the new constitution provided for the
existence of the institution of traditional or cultural leaders whose roles
and powers were restricted to matters cultural. These leaders were
proscribed from exercising any administrative, legislative or executive
powers of government or local government. Their survival was left to the
mercy of government handouts and the charity of its subjects. In the place
of federalism, that the Baganda yearned for, the new constitution offered
the districts of Buganda or others the option to co-operate by way of a
charter. So, soon after the Constitution was promulgated, there was an
outcry in Buganda that what was restored was not the Kingdom envisaged but
rather byoya bya nswa!! The Buganda Lukkiko indeed passed a resolution
rejecting the new constitution. I am not aware that that resolution has ever
been reversed. In 2004/5, when the constitution was to be revised, Buganda
had a second bite on the cherry. Its Katikkiro, J M Semwogerere marshaled
thousands of Buganda supporters to the Nile Conference Center to tender
Bugandas constitutional aspirations. But once again, in spite of the
popularity of the views, Bugandas efforts yielded no fruits and the outcome
of the revisions was the regional governments law which was initially
welcomed but on closer scrutiny was later roundly rejected. So although, a
decade after its rebirth, Bugandas sun was out, a dark cloud was preventing
it to shine. I believe it is around this time that the affair that the
Kingdom had with the NRM and its leadership abated.
In the subsequent decade, instead of the clouds thinning, they became
ominously thicker and save for occasional moments when the suns rays cut
through, there was generally no sunshine. This is because; the seat of the
Kabaka and the Mengo protagonists came under constant threat from the regime
that generally branded them as liars, opportunists and political lepers. For
example, in 2007 Bugandas demand for federalism and the return of
confiscated land and assets was a basis of a fierce tug of war and discord
between the central Government and the Kingdom of Buganda. At the height of
the animosity surrounding the controversial Land Bill, the Central
Government arrested and detained three Kingdom officials including the
current Katikkiro for no offence whatsoever. In addition, a nouveau
cultural-cum-political club of kings was created in Buruli and Bugerere to
challenge the Kabaka authority leading to the illegal refusal, by the
State (read the Army Council) , of the Kabakas to visit to the counties of
Buruli and Bugerere which resulted in the 2009 riots across the Kingdom,
and in which a police station was burnt and over 30 people killed by
government agents. This led to the closure of the Buganda Kingdoms radio
station CBS. No serious investigation has been done and no public report has
ever been issued in this regard. Over 500 people were arrested and detained
on charges ranging from assault to terrorism but all were acquitted once the
DPP failed to prove the offences. Unfortunately those charged for terrorism
spent 3 years in detention for a crime they never committed. Needless to
say, no apologies or compensation have been offered by those responsible to
those wronged.
Today, the tension between the central Government and the Kingdom of Buganda
has somewhat subsided, but there remains a deep mistrust. And as Bugandas
nationalism and its resolve to fight for its interests have grown, so has
the reluctance or heedlessness on the part of the Government to listen, let
alone give in to its demands. Therein is the rub.
The question is how long will this impasse last? And, what does the future
hold for Buganda and Uganda? Will there ever be a congruence of minds or a
civic resolution in our lifetime?
The answer to these questions lies in the fact that the future of Uganda and
Buganda are uniquely, even inextricably, interlinked. It is impossible to
see one advance without the other. This is a fact that ought to be apparent
to both sides. Yet one does not see a serious and purposeful attempt to have
dialogue to resolve the thorny issues. In my view, that dialogue should be
had (preferably chaired by a disinterested party) and must be premised on
the following:
· A review of the agreements that were reached before Buganda agreed to be a
constituent part of Uganda.
· Restitution of the assets and land that were confiscated by Dr. Obotes
regime and reparations where applicable.
· Bugandas demands for self-determination and agreement on devolution of
power and finances based on principles of federalism and not
decentralization.
· Agreement of Bugandas territorial integrity including on the question of
the geographical and administrative boundaries of Kampala City.
· The rights and privileges of the Kabaka including his right to free
movement within and outside his Kingdom.
History shows that Uganda is a fragile union hurriedly forged by British
before the winds of decolonization swept Africa. Its economic and political
stability hinges on a need to find a workable alliance between its
constituent parts. Agreement on this point has been elusive in the last
fifty years. Past efforts to forcefully impose unity by Dr. Obote and others
has had disastrous consequences. Clearly, dictatorship on these issues has
neither worked in the past nor will it work in the future.
The issues raised by the Kingdom of Buganda must be seen and addressed, not
just from a political purview but also fundamentally, from a constitutional
and human rights perspective. We are talking about constitutionally
guaranteed rights of the people of Uganda to self determination; to
property; to freedom of movement; to freedom of assembly; to freedom of
association and to the right to be governed through their will and consent,
amongst others. In view of this, the Government has a constitutional duty to
ensure that these concerns are addressed in a fair and sincere manner.
Looking beyond its interaction with the central government, Buganda will
also need to take a deep look inward and to think on how best it can unlock
its full potential in both political and economic terms. I believe Buganda
is a sleeping giant that needs to be woken up from its slumber. It needs to
convert the love and energy of its peoples into political and economic
capital. As Professor M. Mamdani has previously pointed out, Buganda needs
to discard the mindset of a victimized minority and assume one of a major
actor in both political and economic terms. There needs to be a conscious
and active effort by the kingdom to reach out to and engage other Ugandans
to address issues of national concern. This will reduce the animosity,
resentment and the suspicions often harbored by some groups.
The Kingdoms full emancipation will require not only an innovative
exploitation of its vast human and natural resources but also a careful
streamlining of its administration to make it more efficient and business
like. Besides this, the Kingdom will need to address the many disputes
within its clan structures. Clan structures particularly their composition
and leadership needs to be strengthened. Intra clan disputes, when combined
with attempted breakaways by certain ethnic groups, will threaten the very
foundation and future of the Kingdom.
On the whole, it would appear that the new leadership at Mengo is well
poised to confront these issues. From where I stand, there is every
indication that Bugandas sun is steadily rising and that its best days lie
ahead and not behind it. Little wonder that its youth today optimistically
believe that ekikutte obudde kinaatera okubuta. The only catch is that
Bugandas sun will continue to rise only when Ugandas sun is rising.
Unfortunately, as long as the politics at the center runs out of control or
is hijacked by the military with no respect for human rights, democratic
governance and the rule of law, the dark clouds will remain to obstruct the
sunshine.
Apollo Makubuya
--
H.OGWAPITI
-----------------------------------------------------
"To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we
are to stand by the president right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and
servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."
---Theodore Roosevelt
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