By Babirye Milly Babalanda 

The theme of the 36th NRM/A Victory Day Anniversary Celebrations goes with a tagline: "A call to duty for all compatriots to contribute towards Uganda's Social-economic transformation journey."  This is a call, if not a command, to all of us to employ the zeal and ingenuity of the original NRM/A combatants to transform our motherland, Uganda.

Every generation has its mission and calling. The one of 1981-1986 was called to free the nation from the clasp of tyranny so that the ordinary Ugandan would gain the upper hand in national affairs and they did it with exceptional gallantry. It was all about regaining control and maximising the benefits that being Ugandan had to offer. 

I am in love with the theme for this year which places emphasis on “socio-economic transformation”. Socio-economic transformation happens to be one of the four pillars of the NRM Government-others being Democracy, Patriotism, and Pan-Africanism. The theme is most appropriate. It fits perfectly with what NRM stands for and which is the basis for human dignity. 

What has socio-economic transformation got to do with the NRA/NRM liberation day? Because political liberation without socio-economic health is a nullity! 

Let us, for a moment, imagine what difference it would have made had we always had a right to vote our leaders democratically, and that there was no turning point rigging of elections in 1980; and even stretch back to imagine that Idi Amin had allowed democracy to prevail during his time, but then, in both scenarios, there was total socio-economic breakdown!

It is on record that the socio-economic breakdown during those regimes was phenomenal alongside the absence of democracy and unrestricted state brutality. However, socio-economic meltdown alone would have sparked off equally consequential reactions from the masses. You cannot eat democracy, a vote does not pay school fees! 

The failure by past regimes to spell out clear, actionable economic revival and people-empowerment programmes, coupled with failure to unite Ugandans was enough to put them at steep odds with the people. With Amin, it was not enough to expel Indians as an economic recovery measure. In fact, it was a rushed decision that was not backed by the necessary mindset reorganisation of Ugandans to fill the gap left by foreigners. All that was “achieved” was destroying the baseline of the fragile economy and dealing a blow to backbone sectors of the economy like agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and trade.

The result was “export substitution” with Ugandans relying on imports for basic consumables like sugar, salt, soap, and kerosene. Compare that with the options today!
With Obote, the economy was too small, too poorly managed.

The private sector was stifled and Uganda became a dumping ground for foreign products yet people did not have disposable income on account of being kept out of the money economy. The economy was so poorly managed that even the government could not establish sufficient safeguards for its mandate however questionably that mandate had been acquired. 

Therefore, NRM could not afford to make the same mistakes as its predecessors-of neglecting the individual economic interests of citizens. That is why “socio-economic transformation” is a core pillar in its policy framework. I urge all believers in the NRM creed, and indeed all Ugandans, to view this as their personal maxim for a claim in national transformation. 

From the beginning, NRM committed to putting the economy in the hands of the people. At the time of the dawn of liberation, there was a notable policy shift by the regulators of the international economic system to which Uganda subscribed; the design was for the private sector to play a more notable role in the economic setup of countries through a process of privatising state corporations so as to manage them profitably as opposed to running a sort of welfare system (which was unsustainable) and likely to stifle the growth of the enterprise and entrepreneurial spirit. 

What followed the decision to promote private enterprise was a raft of programs to empower citizens to introduce them to the world of competitive business as local investors. It also meant opening up the economy to foreign investment to set up thriving businesses that would create jobs and furnish the national purse through taxes.

There was a lot of inertia; Ugandans took long to believe that they could actually manage the economy themselves and that every product they imported before could be made locally. Continuous sensitisation and a reminder of the generational mission of present times is building confidence in Ugandans to make use of opportunities around them.

A significant and most compelling message I have heard preached during this time is President Yoweri Museveni’s call on Ugandans to shift from subsistence agriculture into commercial farming, and small-scale manufacturing.

He has ably articulated a formula of land management on a four-acre model which when embraced and implemented massively could localise prosperity. Every household would meet its basic needs while having a presence in the money economy. Earnings and savings would grow, group business dynamics (such as SACCOs) would expand, manufacturing would grow, full import substitution would become a reality and the global market would be filled with the Ugandan trademark. 

Some Ugandans have heard the message and are effectively emerging out of the subsistence class, into the middle class while others are positioning to cement their names among the people who will be remembered as the “cornerstone builders of Uganda”. 

In December last year, for the first time, various Chief Executive Officers (C.E.Os) of various business interests attended a 3-day retreat hosted by the Presidential CEO Forum (PCF) at the National Leadership Institute in Kyankwanzi.

The Presidential CEO Forum deals with private sector issues and represents the Private Sector, Manufacturers, and Industrialists working closely with the government to reinforce private sector inclusion in national development.

This platform fully operationalises the president’s ideas on the role of the private sector in spurring socio-economic development where the Government’s role is to provide a conducive environment and establish the necessary social overheads such as infrastructure development, power, education, health, security as enablers for the business community to perform and flourish. 

The private sector has segments, one of them being for beginners and the other for established investors, industrialists, large-scale producers, and business moguls. They both benefit from the same policy environment in a bottom-up approach that seeks to benefit the common person and enable them to achieve their full potential. This is what makes NRM the people’s darling and cements its strong position politically. 

With the availability of local, regional, and international markets for our goods and services, all that needs to be ascertained is consistency in supply and quality assurance, for Ugandans to assume their place in the socio-economic stratum of liberated Uganda. 

When people prosper, they are better placed to make political decisions and influence policy progressively as stakeholders rather than as outsiders; their patriotism and pride in the nation rises, their Pan-African spirit comes alive! 

Ugandans are the “CEOs” of Uganda as it is. The mission remains to individually and collectively build a strong, prosperous, all-inclusive nation that works for all. NRM, enduring and mature at 36, remains the best ally and guarantor to rely on for this great mission. 

Happy Liberation Day to All Ugandans!

The writer is the Minister for the Presidency