Opposition, 4GC reaction to Sejjusa return naïve & irresponsible

By Paul Wanaye

I was deeply shocked with the remarks made by opposition leaders of 4GC on Sejusa’s return from Sembabule district to his Naguru residence on Tuesday, December 23, 2014. 

Among the key remarks was that made by the lord mayor of Kampala his worship Erias Lukwago. Lukwago stated that there was no need of attending Sejusa’s party because Sejusa had not retired from the army. 

FDC president Mugisha Muntu also made a similar statement that Sejusa should concentrate on retiring from the army before joining politics and so on. 

But coming to real political context, politics is characterized by competition and the winner takes the day. In competitive politics, there are two types of people that must be carefully taken for consideration; a supporter and a voter. 

These two people vary greatly. For a supporter, his or her major task is to mobilize the voters in line with their needs vis-à-vis a voter who casts a vote on their wish. In addition, it is very easy to identify and associate with a supporter unlike a voter who is easy to interact with but very difficult to identify.

Apparently, Sejjusa is a supporter but not a voter to the opposition because he is already in mobilization but its only God who can tell whether his vote is pro opposition or not and this applies to all people be Lukwago, Muntu or Besigye. 

Therefore to an informed and intellectual opposition, they could have embraced Sejjusa’s views minus reservation as long as his mind is leaning towards the opposition.

Saying that we cannot work with Sejjusa because he has not retired from the army is totally irrelevant, naïve and irresponsible. According to Uganda’s constitution, the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (UPDF) is mandated to exist as a coercive body irrespective of any person who is a president. 

Further the army commander is supposed to honor the president who happens to be the commander in chief on behalf of all other soldiers. Sending a message that we cannot work with serving army officers could create an atmosphere of skepticism between the army and the opposition which is very dangerous. 

It seems opposition leaders fear that Sejjusa might become more popular than them which has no problem after all, it’s the public to decide.

Borrowing a leaf from the 2001 elections, Besigye contested as a presidential candidate but by then he had not officially retired from the army and the entire opposition supported him. 

During the 2006 presidential elections, opposition parties like Democratic Party and Uganda people’s congress had their own candidates by names of SebbanaKizito and MiriaKaluleObote but lost miserably because most of their supporters had been trapped by Besigye’s views. 

In reference to Sejjusa’s inclination to the opposition, the centre of gravity should not be on Sejjusa as an individual but his followers or supporters so that in due course, they get trapped in views of the opposition.

Denouncing Sejjusa means that the opposition is too grid, selfish and fears competition internally. And in the real world of Democracy which the opposition claims to be struggling for, any candidate who is unsuccessful in a presidential race surrenders the opportunity to another person in the next race. 

But basing on what is happening with the opposition, the word dictatorship is likely toapply both within the opposition and the ruling party. This dictatorship is due to the fact that some people’s minds are preoccupied with a utopian world. 

Such people think that they can meet their goals the way they want which is impossible. Whatever human beings do on this planet is just a mere trial which must be left for another person to come and add on. 

From a biblical perspective, Jesus Christ was perfect in all his works but by the time he left, he had not completed everything. Meaning that Christ left the task for another person to carry on and this should similarly apply to our politicians.

The writer is an MBA student