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 The Baganda , rich in folklore always tell the story of a wicked witch who tricked a Youngman to help her cross the river on his back but upon reaching the other side of the bank, the witch clung deep her sharp evil fingers into the young man's back and sucking blood from his neck like a vampire thus ending his life prematurely. The irony in the story is not only that of betryal upon reaching the promised land but also one of reneging on a promise to climb down from the good samaritan's back. While one can find the above as wonderful material for a children's magazine, the reality of the story is alive and currently being cast in Buganda and Uganda in general.
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The good Samaritan in the story is Buganda, a selfless entity with acceptance of the need to help for the common good with expectations of gratitude from those it helps. The National Resistance Movement liberation war was hosted by Buganda in which the devastation of the Kingdom took semblance of a genocide perpetuated by both warring factions in the 1980s. The Baganda had the largest number of fighters, but are the least decorated whereby none has the rank of a full general despite being at the forefront of the liberation struggle. However all the Generals in the army hail from the president's ethnic group. While the war was rejected by the elderly men of Ntungamo, the peasants of Buganda hosted the conflict with many sacrificing their lives for the regime including Edidian Lutttamaguzi in Luweero. It required not only breaking cultural norms but also risking the Kabaka's life when he visited the bush to morale boost the guerillas. How could the National Resistance Army outsmart the Uganda army without the cooperation of Andrew Kayiira's UFM?
Betrayal
While Museveni was leading a rebellion in the Bush , he won Buganda support by promising to restore the monarchy and the Federo political arrangement. In 1988 Museveni instituted the Odoki Commision to collect views of the Ugandan people which revealed a 61% acceptance of the Federo arrangement throughtout Uganda and a 90% percent support in the whole of Buganda but despite this the CA recommended Decentralization and in March 2003 the Government Whitepaper recommended a regional tier arrangement which was contested in Buganda till today.
Buganda's stability a threat to Museveni's imperial presidency
In 1986 Museveni announced to Ugandans that NRM and himself in particular were to be in power for only 4 years but later increased their stay until 1996 citing a number of reasons - Ugandans could understand then. The CA provided for term limits in article 105(2) of the 1995 constitution concerning the tenure of the president regardless of performance for two 5 year terms. Based on Uganda's history, the limits were intended to curtail any efforts towards dictatorship. Mr Museveni was the first beneficiary of the new law but turned against it in 2001 when he appointed a commission to review the constitution with particular interest in eliminating article 105(2) to allow him to contest in 2006 elections. Museveni massively rigged this in his favour and despite the supreme court ruling that his election was a fraud, he has continued to rule for another five year term ending in 2011. Currently Mr. Museveni a veteran of the politics of the 1960s, is currently traversing the country campaigning for another term in office after scrapping the term limits. He is doing so under the blind pretext of campaigning for NRM candidates in the By-elections in Bujumba, Isingiro, Kyadondo and Sembabule. All signs point to him and any of his family members as possible candidates in the 2011 elections and with the election fraud evinced in the by-elections he is slated for a victory putting him amongst the world's longest serving rulers.
The maneuver to perpetuate Museveni in power is a product of a meeting held on the 15 March 1992 at the president's country ranch in Rwakitura. Representation of members at the meeting was drawn from the Basiita clan of the Bahima sub-ethnic group of the Banyankore, chaired by Mr Museveni. The meeting allegedly resolved among many issues how to perpetuate Mr. Museveni in power and ruling Uganda for atleast 50 years by the NRM (see Juma Okuku: 2001) and to give members of their clan social and economic opportunities. This kleptocracy has today gained dominance in politics, bureaucracy, the army and business. The only threat to this well organized plan is an ethnic group with a long history of organization and opposition to dictatorships. That organisation is Mengo which appears to be a suitable deterrent to Mr. Museveni's imperial rule. An organized Buganda is a strong opposition to a dictatorship based on sectarian rule and with Mengo's stand Mr. Museveni's imperial presidency is in doubt. Mengo's demands are antagonistic to the wishes of the ruling ethnic monority in Uganda who are occupied currently with the responsibility of consolidating a one-man dictatorship. The Federo arrangement is likely to create a devolution of powers from the centre yet such powers are needed by the imperial rulers to consolidate and maintain their dictatorship. This is likely to be the underlying cause of a conflict that will see Uganda bleed.
Moses Kalanzi
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African Union to consider "land for Haitians" plan
A police truck leaves with arrested looters in a destroyed commercial area of Port-au-Prince January 30, 2010. Haiti's leaders can point to progress since a powerful earthquake devastated the country but just surviving the first weeks' chaos, hunger and overwhelming loss may be the easiest part of a long reco
The African Union (AU) agreed on Sunday to consider a Senegalese proposal to resettle Haiti's earthquake homeless and possibly create a state for them in Africa.
The idea was first floated by Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade who said the history of Haitians as descendants of African slaves gave them the right to a new life on the continent.
AU chairman Jean Ping told African leaders at its annual summit in Addis Ababa that they would discuss the proposal during the three-day event. The AU had opened an account for Haiti with the African Development Bank, he said.
"It is ...