CURRENT UGANDA’S POLITICAL ANALYSIS AND DEMOCRACY

 

CURRENT UGANDA’S POLITICAL ANALYSIS AND DEMOCRACY

Democracy is a state where people can change their rulers in a peaceful manner and the government is given the right to the rule because the people say it may. According to the freedom house, Uganda’s democracy is fading over time and the country has been ruled by the same party and president since 1986.The ruling party, the National resistance movement (NRM), retains power through the manipulation of the state resources, intimidation by security forces and politicized prosecution of opposition leaders. With a multi-party system based on a democratic parliamentary system standing on the choices and rights of all citizens over 18 years of age, the system has greatly experienced a huge sham with the country top leaders still acting against democracy more so during and after elections periods. Uganda often witnesses political violence during general elections with strong acts witnessed in 2002 under Gen.Museveni’s regime. Below am questioning myself if democracy is still at hand as various issues which I outline and explain still exist which strongly show how dictatorial the current regime is-in times of Uganda’s desperate search for lost freedom.

Systematic efforts of the government to intimidate and control the media. It should be noted that a free, energetic, vigilant and adversarial press has been understood to be an essential guarantee of democratic reforms, however Museveni’s regime has strongly tried as much as it can to ensure that this is not  exercised and on the other hand an array of legal and extralegal mechanism continues to limit free expression. In-depth interviews with Uganda’s journalist reveals that journalists face dangers if they report critically about the president or his inner circle. Freedom house (2017) said that the Ugandan government and press have “settled into a predictable relationship’’ where the government sporadically “lashes out’’ the media in various ways which at times these heavy handed actions tend to disrupt operations.

Building an official pro-Museveni media network. Currently the government has tried to suppress media critics whereas on the other hand it has bolstered media by offering consistent support to the private Media owners, infiltering of newsrooms by security spies, legal threats and withholding of advertising from institutions deemed to be critical of the government. As respected Ugandan radio host and media scholar, Samuel Kazibwe said, “in addition to political, economic pressure and oppressive legal regime has become the political one because it even has the capacity to close a media house without following any legally laid down rules and procedures’’.

Using government surveillance against domestic political opponents. Uganda’s government capacity to monitor phones, emails, hard drives, political rallies of opponents and online activities which is prejudicial to Uganda’s democracy. Several cases have aroused including the night drone surveillance to one of the presidential opponent Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine at his home in magere. Bobi Wine’s lawyer Medard Lubega Ssegona who doubles as Busiro East member of parliament also confirmed the reports as he posted on his socials “I have received multiple messages about the drone rounding Kyagulanyi’s residence, I urge you to be strong we should anticipate more than this…….” an incident which happened after the security forces raiding the National Unity Platform(NUP) offices in Kamwokya and confiscated security cameras, party symbols, money amounting to 23million and other items found in its offices. These activities still lack adequate oversight and have sometimes broken the law

Politicizing the civil service, military, judicial court and domestic security forces such as Uganda Police. Museveni’s government normally appoints people who are personally loyal and behold to him. In normal grounds under democracy heads of institutions jurors with independent standing and stellar qualifications should be appointed. All these institutions are shadowed by Museveni and therefore this has also distorted the independent decision policy making and performance of these major institutions.

Stacking the Judiciary. In a recent editorial in the Daily Monitor, law professor Busingye Kabumba of Makerere University describes the country’s 1995 constitution as “essentially an illusion’’. While the first article of the constitution gives power to the people Professor Busingye suggests that the shared perception among Ugandans is that “all the powers belong to President Museveni who exercises his sovereignty through the army’’ His influence also in the appointing of government officials who don’t care about the views on hot button issues such as corruption, police brutality, and impunity in the judiciary courts which shams Uganda’s democracy

Enforcing the law for one side majorly “the opposition’’. As Uganda is nearing the 2021 elections during the Covid19 pandemic outbreak, “normal campaigns’’ have been called off and replaced with “scientific campaigns’’ in trying to curb the rates of Covid19 infections. However, members of the ruling government continue to hold political rallies while campaigning and not stopped by the security forces and the Electoral Commission with gatherings exceeding 200 people, the maximum standard number set by the EC to be on a political rally. On Wednesday 18/Nov/2020 the police arrested Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine and detained him for more than 2 days(48hrs) before he was brought to court in Iganga for campaigning against the set rules. Photos have been circulating on socials as National Resistance movement(NRM) members and with President Museveni at political rallies with people exceeding above the set number. Are they above the law? Why were elections not called off as the constitution grants permission to this?

Suppressing opposition voters by the President and Army leaders who term them as “hooligans’’. Following the arrest of the presidential aspirant Bobi Wine 37 people were killed during protests by armed men in uniform. Was this the efficient way to handle these protestors? In other political gatherings, masses have been brutally arrested and teargassed more often on the gatherings of opposition leaders. This voter suppression hasn’t started of recent even though the security forces claim that opposition voters are hooligans. Some close sources have also revealed that the people involved in looting and destruction of people’s properties are government mercenaries paid to destroy and tarnish the stand of opposition

Fear mongering of Ugandans by Museveni’s regime. Museveni and some of his Ministers have continued to stock fear in Ugandans by either threatening to arrest and terming opposition leaders as cahoot members in gay communities and other outsiders in trying to gear up violence in the country in trying to convince that opposition members are in league with the country’s enemies. In politics this is an autocratic tactic designed to convince a frightened population to look to the leader for protection.

 

©AHABYONA DERRICK

Concerned citizen of Uganda