Sam, I respect your observations to the extend of their degree of accuracy. No doubt we are a civil society organisation capable of doing all lawful things within jurisdictions except unlike governements we lack force backed-structures in our attempt to foster development. I'm sure you are also more familiar than me on the role civil society organisations have played in the face of repressions in streamlining and providing policy alternatives to governments across the globe. But your sort of civility that propagates fear over critique of issues is what i wouldn’t subscribe to.Where would one have erred on this forum by providing alternatives or identifying issues impeding our development? You ignored one very important fact, we are the public and government you proposed the information be reserved for! So in my opinion, there is no ideal and focus more civil than bringing to forefront of issues problems that hold us back. Civility which doesn't create room for intellectual discussion is a dead one and i would suggest must be refrained from. It will eventually be like indescipline originated from excessive descipline. For instance, on 18th April, 2010, I attended a burial in a village at Oluffe Sub County of a youth who had succumbed to meningitis; a highly contagious airborne disease that killed several people early February this year and still continues to kill more voiceless poor-peasants in West Nile unrecognizably. Whereas health service delivery is one of the salient obligations of governments across the globe, many tax payers in our communities even with known outbreak pattern are still not immunized to-date. Thanks MSF, government in her reactionary approach to issues had delayed to intervene; later to come in with a few dosages of drugs to immunize locals after over 70 people were reported infected and 10 dead (Monitor, 23 2010). People above 60yrs were told they can’t be immunized to avoid wastage of drugs targeted at the younger generation. Sub counties such as Tara and parts Yivu have been excluded from this immunization programme for reasons as miserable as lack of resources to buy more drugs yet every day we see resources being mismanaged in the country with the President reportedly living on 300M per day. Who else will save lives and speak for such voiceless people if not ourselves on this forum? On my return to Kampala, the first thing I read of in the Daily Monitor is creation of 14 new districts inclusive of Maracha supposedly to take services closure to the people by alteration of Arua and Maracha-Terego districts' boundaries. This news didn’t only excite my adrenaline, it also sent cold into my spine with a key question still lingering in my mind unanswered: which exceptional service, more meaningful than live will the district bring to Maracha people if the same government seeking to take services closer to them can not care about their lives even when in death bed? I don't know what would really be more important than life to save, more valued of a precedence to set if we waver from our obligations? Otherwise I thank all you for your comments on this article. I'm particularly indebted to Akile, Sam, and others for providing us with the other side of coin. However i maintain "the only thing we must fear is fear itself" or else face a situation where excessive discipline eventually erodes into indiscipline. Denis Lee Oguzu ________________________________
Dear all, I am drawn to comment on the battle lines drawn by Christine and Akile on the subject matter raised by Lee. I still would like to agree with Akile that the subject of such discussions could be disastrous to the forum because it can easily be intepreted out of context and make West Nile Foundation sound partisan - I beilieve as a Civil Society Organisation, we should as much as possible reflect this nutrality. Information contained in Lees analysis is important for public consumption and governments consideration. I would rather they be discussed as development concerns but not engage it in party lines. We should maintain our civil duties of informing and educating our people and yet be conscious of the fragile 'freedom of expression' practiced in Uganda. Otherwise, we are likely to set a precedence that will eventually eat into our ideals and focus. I rest my case. From: Sam Ejibua <[email protected]> To: A Virtual Network for friends of West Nile <[email protected]> Sent: Mon, April 26, 2010 5:23:28 PM Subject: [WestNileNet] Can Northern Uganda cast vote of self-destruction?
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