We are only a step away from marking three complete decades under the stewardship of a one Kaguta Museveni as head of state. That does not sound like a long time until you put it into context.
There are Ugandans born right at the hour of liberation, 1986. Those Ugandans have gone on to bring life into this world meaning their offspring are borns of this regime too. If you went to the countryside where early marriage is prevalent, chances are high you may discover three generations of a family born of the NRM-Museveni reign.
On 26 January, National Resistance Movement (NRM) Party celebrated 29 years since it came to power following the capture of Kampala by the National Resistance Army.
Dig deeper, the revolutionaries across Africa who became statesmen around the same time as His Excellency, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni are also becoming a rarity in recent years. If they have not been sent into the next life (presumably heaven), they are in the evening of their life and only time will tell when they too will be long gone from this earth.
On 26th January, as has been in the past, Ugandans got their first gift of the calendar year. A public holiday. The NRM took to Soroti to commemorate the nobility in taking to the bush and subsequently liberating us Ugandans of amongst others bad governance. While me and you sat back to enjoy an extended weekend we were reminded of how many roads have been tarmacked, how many schools have been started, how many graduates have been passed out, how many hospital wards have been expanded, how many boreholes have been dug and so and so forth. And we are very grateful. There is no doubt about that. Even when we know how much more could have been done. Or what still needs to be done in terms of public service especially if CORRUPTION had not been given full citizenship in Uganda.
I sat back later wondering if after 29 years inspite of the progress made we still have relatively the same problems then what then are we celebrating as a country. With our perennial troubles still lurking through the news every other day, what are we celebrating?
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29 years of gloating. Each and every year, there is an effort to juxtapose the state of affairs in the past and present. Just so we can know what our position is. In other words, we must be religiously thankful to those who spent days fighting the bad governance and nights warding off mosquitoes in the bush. Roads, schools, hospitals name it.
Each year, we are brought to speed about how much has been done. Of course what has not been done is swept under the carpet. It actually does not exist and as such there is no cause for concern. Just sit back and wait for whatever it is to be sorted when those in power please.
When one raises an eyebrow, you’re asked where you were when “they were fighting in the bush?” In recent years the trend has grown and those in the opposition have suffered the most abuse. If they have not been called wolves, they have been labelled as saboteurs of prosperity. Even when it is vivid that what those in the opposition are decrying is indeed a calamity awaiting to befall Ugandans. That adds to the list of what we celebrated. 29 years of rebukes. It is those who raise eyebrows who are the problem in this country. And not those who actually are the cause.
We have thus gone to bed and arisen in the morning with disapproval of the current state of affairs. In that case, we have to also celebrate 29 years of detest and protest. The protests have obviously grown in intensity in recent years. As the frustration grows. Initially, there was detest as Ugandans were fed with hope for a brighter future. Some of the issues raised were sorted. What remained as leftovers is what has generated protest. And we have to celebrate that too.
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